cheri beasley

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.

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 13, 2022 - A Republican justice on the North Carolina Supreme Court will hear a lawsuit filed against his father, the leader of the state Senate, over whether a racially gerrymandered legislature can amend the constitution. The decision came after his colleagues decided not to disqualify him, amid a pressure campaign by powerful conservative forces that accused the court of engaging in a coup and threatened justices with impeachment.

January 14, 2021 - The Louisiana Supreme Court recently took down a statue of a former judge who fought for the Confederacy and participated in a deadly coup against the Reconstruction-era state government. And in North Carolina, the high court removed a portrait of its former chief justice, a brutal enslaver.

December 17, 2020 - For years, the North Carolina Supreme Court has faced calls to take down a large painting of a chief justice who trafficked in and brutalized enslaved people. A court-appointed commission wants to replace the portrait with a smaller version, but some members would like to see all of the portraits gone.

November 18, 2020 - Last year, courts ordered the North Carolina legislature to undo the extreme partisan gerrymandering that kept Republicans in control, even when Democrats got more total votes. But the recent election results suggest that many of the districts remained skewed towards the GOP. 

August 26, 2020 - Southern states are holding judicial elections this year that will shape the outcome of critical cases involving voting rights and criminal justice. The elections could also bring unprecedented diversity to courts in some states.