State v. Harris, 236 N.C. App. 388 (Sept. 16, 2014)

In a case where the defendant was convicted of sexual battery and contributing to the abuse or neglect of a juvenile, the trial court did not err by failing to intervene ex mero motu during the prosecutor’s final argument to the jury. The defendant challenged the prosecutor’s statement that he had ruined the victim’s childhood and that if it failed to find the victim’s testimony credible, it would be sending a message that she would need to be hurt, raped, or murdered before an alleged abuser could be convicted.