A Dare County resident posted a recording that he said captures former Judge Jerry Tillett using the N-word, which Tillet denies.
Michael Hewlett
Michael Hewlett is a courts and law reporter for The Assembly. He was previously a legal affairs reporter at the Winston-Salem Journal and has won two Henry Lee Weathers Freedom of Information Awards.
Posted inCourts & Justice
U.S. Supreme Court Passes on Jury Discrimination Case
A prosecutor had said he removed a potential juror because she was a woman who had children close in age to the defendants.
Posted inCourts & Justice
A High-Court Press
Prosecutors asked the state Supreme Court to step in before the Court of Appeals can review a judge’s ruling vacating the convictions of four men.
Posted inCourts & Justice
Lawmakers Raise More eCourts Questions
State lawmakers said court officials in their home districts have not seen the conveniences and cost-savings eCourts was supposed to bring.
Posted inCourts & Justice
Attorneys File State Bar Complaints Against Wake County Prosecutor
Two attorneys have filed State Bar complaints against a Wake County prosecutor who has been accused multiple times of violating discovery rules.
Posted inCourts & Justice
Another Shot at Freedom
Two men exonerated in August in the murder of Chris Paul’s grandfather are still in prison. Their lawyer asked the N.C. Supreme Court to release them.
Posted inPolitics & Government
The Lawyers Who Kept Screwing Up
A section of the N.C. DOJ repeatedly erred and antagonized federal judges–even in cases they seemed guaranteed to win.
Posted inElections
Judges Allow GOP-Drawn Congressional Map for 2026 Election
The outcome will likely have ripple effects nationally as each party attempts to gerrymander its way to a U.S. House majority.
Posted inPolitics & Government
The Politics of an Arrest
Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page’s leadership of his agency has become a key issue in his primary campaign against GOP Senate leader Phil Berger.
Posted inCourts & Justice
It’s Illegal to Use Gender in Jury Selection. That Hasn’t Stopped it From Happening.
The U.S. Supreme Court has forbidden using gender as a reason to remove potential jurors, but N.C. appellate courts have done little to enforce that.
