State v. Guy, ___ N.C. App. ___, 822 S.E.2d 66 (Nov. 6, 2018)

The trial court did not err by failing to intervene ex mero motu during the State’s closing argument. At issue was the prosecutor’s reference to the defendant’s gang ties. Here, when the defendant called two codefendants as witnesses, both testified that they were gang members and one admitted that he and the defendant belonged to the same gang. The prosecutor’s statements merely commented on the evidence that had been presented. Also, the prosecutor’s argument did not center on gang involvement. The prosecutor’s only reference to gang involvement was in one paragraph of her closing argument. As such the prosecutor’s statement did not render the trial fundamentally unfair.