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September 15, 2022 -
In recent years, the North Carolina Supreme Court has addressed persistent injustices in the criminal legal system, including racism in jury selection. But the court could reverse course if Republicans win a majority this November.
August 24, 2022 -
The state's Democratic-controlled high court ruled that a legislature found to discriminate against Black voters doesn't have unlimited authority to propose constitutional amendments. The decision caps off a four-year legal battle over amendments approved by voters that mandate voter ID and lower the state's income tax cap.
February 24, 2022 -
With federal courts limiting the scope of protections, voting rights advocates are turning to state courts to challenge election districts for violating state constitutional rights. A recent ruling in North Carolina has given hope to voters who've filed similar lawsuits in other Southern states.
February 9, 2022 -
The president has pledged to nominate the first Black woman to the highest court in the land to replace retiring liberal Justice Stephen Breyer. A few of the potential justices are judges or judicial nominees from Southern states, including two with extensive experience as voting rights lawyers.
January 27, 2022 -
As the N.C. Supreme Court prepares to hear a lawsuit challenging gerrymandered election districts, a prominent Republican leader has brought up the possibility of the legislature impeaching judges. It hasn't happened in well over a century, when white supremacist Democrats impeached two justices, as well as a Klan-fighting governor.
May 4, 2020 -
The decision is the first time the court has ruled against prosecutors on a claim of discrimination against black jurors. The court's only Republican justice dissented.
December 6, 2018 -
Last month voters in North Carolina put a top voting rights lawyer on the state Supreme Court. Just a few weeks later, the U.S. Senate defeated the judicial nomination of Thomas Farr, who some critics described as the go-to lawyer in North Carolina for defending voter suppression.
