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NC Supreme Court Imposes Limits on Severe Punishment for Youth

June 27, 2022

Last week, the North Carolina Supreme Court issued two important decisions concerning the way our state imposes prison time on people who committed crimes when they were children.

In State v. Kelliher and State v. Conner, the Court reiterated that … Continue Reading →

New Wilson Center Report Highlights 7-Year Evolution of Eyewitness Identification 

May 20, 2022

For Immediate Release: May 20, 2022 

DURHAM, N.C. — Eyewitness identification has come a long way in the past seven years — the last time the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) summarized the state of research in that area. There … Continue Reading →

Wilson Center Applauds Gov. Roy Cooper for Exercising Clemency Power

March 17, 2022

Late last week, Gov. Roy Cooper announced he would commute the sentences of April Barber, Joshua McKay, and Anthony Willis — three individuals who were sentenced to long terms in prison for crimes they committed when they were teenagers.

This … Continue Reading →

Update on North Carolina Budget, COVID Prison Conditions

December 30, 2021

By Ruthie Kesri

The North Carolina General Assembly recently released its final budget, the first since 2018, and it allocated funds that will directly affect the health and safety of incarcerated people in North Carolina’s prison population.

Against the wishes … Continue Reading →

Letter to White House: Criminal Justice AI Should Not be ‘Black Box’ or Non-Transparent

December 10, 2021

By Brandon Garrett and Cynthia Rudin

Today, as data-driven technologies have been implemented across a wide range of human activities, new warnings have been issued from a wide range of sources, academic, public policy, and government, regarding the dangers posed … Continue Reading →

Connection, Trust, and Recovery: Interview with Sandra Lassiter, Others, of Stick & Stay Prevention

November 30, 2021

Editor’s Note: If you’ve ever needed help but weren’t sure where to turn, then you know how important just one trustworthy guide can be. This blog post is part of an occasional series called “Connection, Trust, and Recovery,” by Michele … Continue Reading →

Bass Connections Team Explores Need for Better Jail Data in North Carolina

November 23, 2021

“We can’t have any evidence-based solutions because we don’t have the evidence. We’re not able to gather and collect evidence. That’s why it’s very important that we have the data so that we can know what’s happening,” — A North … Continue Reading →

Wilson Center Receives Grant Funding for Plea Bargaining Work

November 12, 2021

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 11 a.m., Nov. 12, 2021

CONTACT: Melissa Boughton (830) 481-6901 melissa.boughton@law.duke.edu

DURHAM, N.C. — Duke University’s Sanford School of Public Policy and the Wilson Center for Science and Justice at Duke Law have received just under $900,000 … Continue Reading →

Event Recap: Henry McCollum, Leon Brown Attorneys Talk Wrongful Convictions

October 25, 2021

By Annie Han

In 1983, Red Springs, North Carolina, 19-year-old Henry McCollum and 15-year-old Leon Brown were wrongfully arrested for the rape and murder of a young Sabrina Buie. With the teens’ intellectual disabilities (McCollum’s IQ being 51 and Brown’s … Continue Reading →

National Harm from Suspending Licenses in Response to Unpaid, Unaffordable Court Fines and Fees

October 7, 2021

By Annie Han

Driving is critical for many people in North Carolina. North Carolinians need to drive to work, to take their children to school, and to complete other everyday tasks like grocery shopping and attending to their health. But, … Continue Reading →

Wilson Center Releases New Report on NC Fines, Fees, and Driver’s License Suspensions

September 29, 2021

For some of us, an $80 speeding ticket is an unpleasant inconvenience. Yet for others, particularly those living in poverty, that same ticket can turn into a years-long nightmare of crushing debt and even the loss of their driver’s license … Continue Reading →

Everything You Need to Know About Clemency in North Carolina

September 17, 2021

By Ben Finholt and Jamie Lau

On April 8, 2021, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper signed Executive Order 208, establishing the Juvenile Sentence Review Board. This board is a new mechanism for executive clemency, which has been described as “provid[ing] … Continue Reading →