We all know that November 8 is a big day. But with all of the news and scandals surrounding presidential candidates taking up most of our nightly news, there is little time to talk about local and state government elections. And while these elections may not have the star power or dramatic twists and turns of the national contest, they may be even more important to your everyday lives. After all, state government controls the way many criminal charges and convictions are treated.

With that in mind, let’s look at the current candidates [...]

There is no doubt that the way North Carolina classifies and assigns penalties to charges can be confusing. Case in point: we have 10 different felony classifications!

So if you are caught with illegal drugs, you might be surprised by the charges that are ultimately levied against you. How is this decided? Which drug crimes are felonies, which are misdemeanors, and how does the type of drug affect sentencing? Could they have gotten your charges wrong? Can you fight for different charges?

Let’s break down North Carolina drug crime laws to answer these [...]