Carolina Criminal Defense & DUI Lawyer UpdatesJury selection in North Carolina criminal cases follows a structured process governed by state statute, and what happens during “voir dire” can shape the outcome of a trial in ways that are not always visible to defendants sitting at the defense table. The decision about who sits on a jury ordinarily involves multiple rounds of questioning, different types of legal challenges, and procedural protocols. When something unexpected happens during jury selection, such as a juror raising a concern about fairness after already being selected for the jury panel, the law provides steps for how courts and lawyers respond. Understanding how things work can matter if you’re facing a criminal charge in North Carolina.
TL;DR Jury selection in North Carolina criminal cases involves two distinct types of challenges, challenges for cause and peremptory challenges, each governed by separate statutory procedures. When a juror raises a concern after being accepted, the law under N.C. Gen. Stat. section 15A-1214(g) provides a specific process for addressing concerns, including the possibility of reopening voir dire. Whether a defendant can later challenge a jury selection decision on appeal may depend on exhausting available peremptory challenges.
Bill Powers has helped clients in North Carolina for more than thirty years. He is Board Certified in Criminal Law by the National Board of Trial Advocacy / National Board of Legal Specialty Certification and is a recipient of the North Carolina State Bar’s John B. McMillan Distinguished Service Award. Bill enjoys teaching and hosting continuing legal education programs. If you are facing a serious criminal charge in North Carolina, such as Misdemeanor Death by Vehicle or Felony Serious Injury or Felony Death by Vehicle involving DUI charges, and have questions about how the trial process works, please call Bill Powers and the criminal defense team at Powers Law Firm at 704-342-4357 to schedule a consultation.
Challenge for Cause and Peremptory Challenges in North Carolina
Challenges for cause and peremptory challenges are the two tools North Carolina law gives each side in jury selection. How each tool works, how many times each side can use it, and the decisions made in using them can all affect what arguments remain available if the case is later appealed.
A challenge for cause asks the trial court to remove a potential juror based on a specific, articulable reason that suggests the juror cannot be fair and impartial.
North Carolina law requires the trial court to excuse a juror when a valid basis for a challenge for cause exists. The decision about whether that basis exists rests with the trial judge, who has broad discretion in making that determination.
Common grounds for a challenge for cause include a juror’s prior knowledge of the case, a relationship with one of the parties, or a stated inability to follow the Court’s (the Judge’s) instructions. The number of challenges for cause available to each side is not limited by statute. Any juror who cannot be fair and impartial is subject to removal for cause.
A peremptory challenge allows a party to remove a potential juror without stating any reason, subject to certain limitations. Peremptory challenges are limited in number.
Under N.C. Gen. Stat. section 15A-1217, the number available depends on the nature of the charges and whether the case involves the possibility of capital punishment. In non-capital felony cases, each side receives six peremptory challenges. Because peremptory challenges are finite, how and when a lawyer uses them involves strategic judgment about which jurors present the greatest concern and which challenges are worth spending.
The relationship between these two tools becomes particularly significant when a challenge for cause is denied. A lawyer who disagrees with the trial court’s ruling on a challenge for cause may use a peremptory challenge to remove that juror. Whether that decision was made, and whether peremptory challenges were ultimately exhausted, can directly affect what arguments remain available if the case is later appealed.
When a Juror Raises a Concern During Jury Selection
After a potential juror has been questioned and accepted by both sides, that juror is not necessarily locked into the panel if new information surfaces. North Carolina law under N.C. Gen. Stat. section 15A-1214(g) addresses exactly this situation. If at any time after a juror has been accepted but before the jury is formally impaneled it is discovered that the juror made an incorrect statement during voir dire, or that some other good reason exists to question that juror’s fitness, the trial court has authority to act.
The statute gives the trial court a set of options.
The Court may examine the juror and permit counsel to examine the juror to determine whether a basis for a challenge for cause exists. If the court determines that a basis for challenge for cause does exist, the Court should excuse the juror or sustain a challenge for cause. If the Court determines no basis for challenge for cause exists, a party who has not exhausted peremptory challenges may still be able to challenge the juror at issue using a peremptory strike.
The North Carolina Supreme Court addressed this framework in State v. Boggess, 358 N.C. 676 (2004), and explained that when the trial court allows attorneys to question a juror directly, voir dire has necessarily been reopened, and the full procedures of section 15A-1214(g) should apply. Once voir dire is reopened, the parties have the opportunity to exercise any remaining peremptory challenges as to that juror. A trial court that permits counsel to question a juror under such circumstances but then refuses to allow the exercise of remaining peremptory challenges likely commits reversible error.
The practical takeaway is relatively straightforward. When a juror raises a concern after being accepted, defense counsel faces a decision that requires action on the record, at that moment, with whatever peremptory challenges remain available.
Reopening Voir Dire in North Carolina
Voir dire is the process of questioning potential jurors before they are formally seated on the jury. In most cases, voir dire proceeds in a standard, orderly sequence and concludes before opening statements begin. Reopening voir dire means the process gets revisited after it was initially closed, sometimes triggered by new information or concerns that emerges about a juror already accepted by both sides.
Under North Carolina law, reopening voir dire is generally not a routine (or preferred) practice, as it can introduce problems and may be a time-consuming, disruptive process. There needs to be a showing that something happened after a juror was accepted that gives a legitimate reason (concern) to question and, therefore, revisit the juror’s impartiality.
The statutory procedures of N.C. Gen. Stat. section 15A-1214(g) govern what happens next. The trial court possesses tremendous discretion in the jury selection process as a whole, including whether it is appropriate to reopen voir dire. In the event the Court permits counsel to question the juror directly, the full procedural protections of the statute may then come into play.
For defendants and defense lawyers, the significance of a reopened voir dire is that it reactivates the right to challenge that juror and review impartiality or bias. A party that still has unused peremptory challenges retains the right to use one of those challenges on the juror in question, regardless of whether the trial court finds a basis for a challenge for cause.
That right exists independently of the Court’s ruling on cause. That said, failing to exercise a peremptory challenge in that instance, or the failure to preserve the record, can affect what arguments (if any) remain available if the case is later appealed.
The procedural sequence also matters. Appellate courts reviewing jury selection decisions look first at what happened in the trial court and whether the proper steps were taken at the time. A defendant who wants to later argue on appeal that a biased juror improperly remained on the panel faces significant legal hurdles if the record does not reflect that available challenges were used.
Why Exhausting Peremptory Challenges Matters in North Carolina
The requirement to exhaust peremptory challenges is not a mere technicality. It is a predicate to bringing a challenge for cause argument on appeal in North Carolina. N.C. Gen. Stat. section 15A-1214(h) sets forth the requirements a defendant must satisfy to seek reversal on the ground that the trial court erred by refusing to allow a challenge for cause. The defendant must have exhausted available peremptory challenges, renewed the challenge for cause after exhausting any such challenge, and had the renewal motion denied (by the Court) as to the juror in question.
The reasoning behind the requirement reflects how the two types of challenges work together. The legislature gives defendants peremptory challenges so that jurors a defendant finds objectionable can be removed without having to convince the Court of subtle bias or a specific legal basis. A defendant who has unused peremptory challenges but declines to use one on a potentially problematic juror cannot thereafter be a basis for appeal.
Decisions made during jury selection carry consequences that do not always become apparent until much later in the process. The statutory procedures exist to protect the right to a fair and impartial jury. Protections require active engagement at the trial level to preserve their benefit at any later appellate review.
Frequently Asked Questions | Jury Selection in North Carolina
Can a juror be removed after they have already been picked?
North Carolina law allows a juror to be questioned again and potentially removed after being accepted, as long as the jury has not yet been formally impaneled. Under N.C. Gen. Stat. section 15A-1214(g), if new information surfaces suggesting a juror cannot be fair and impartial, the trial court has authority to reopen questioning and take appropriate action, including excusing the juror or allowing the parties to exercise remaining peremptory challenges.
What happens if a juror says they can't be fair?
A juror who expresses doubt about their ability to be fair and impartial triggers a specific process under North Carolina law. The trial court has discretion to question the juror further, allow counsel to ask additional questions, and determine whether a legal basis exists to remove the juror for cause. If the Court (the Judge) finds a basis for cause, the juror will be excused. If the Court finds no basis for cause, the parties may still remove the juror using a peremptory challenge if any remain available.
How many jurors are on a jury in North Carolina?
North Carolina criminal cases are decided by a jury of twelve. Both sides work through voir dire to select those twelve jurors and alternates from the pool of potential jurors summoned to court. Each side holds a limited number of peremptory challenges, with additional challenges available for alternate jurors. The process governed by N.C. Gen. Stat. section 15A-1217.
How many peremptory challenges do you get in North Carolina?
For most criminal charges in North Carolina, each side receives six peremptory challenges. In a capital case, meaning a case where the death penalty is possible, that number increases to fourteen per defendant. Each party also receives one additional peremptory challenge for each alternate juror, on top of any unused challenges.
What is voir dire for jury selection in a criminal case?
Voir dire is the process of questioning potential jurors before they are formally seated on the jury. During voir dire, the judge and attorneys ask potential jurors questions designed to identify any bias, prior knowledge of the case, or other factors that might affect their ability to decide the case fairly based solely on the evidence. Both sides use voir dire to evaluate potential jurors and decide whether to challenge any of them for cause or use a peremptory challenge to remove them.
Can you appeal a jury selection decision in North Carolina?
Appealing a jury selection decision in North Carolina requires satisfying specific procedural requirements at the trial level. A defendant who wants to argue on appeal that the trial court wrongly refused to remove a juror for cause must have exhausted all available peremptory challenges, renewed the challenge for cause after exhausting those challenges, and had that renewal denied. Failure to follow those steps forecloses the argument on appeal under N.C. Gen. Stat. section 15A-1214(h).
What is a peremptory challenge in a North Carolina criminal trial?
A peremptory challenge allows a party to remove a potential juror without giving any reason. Each side receives a limited number of peremptory challenges under North Carolina law, with the exact number depending on the type of case. Because peremptory challenges are finite, deciding when and how to use them involves judgment about which potential jurors present the greatest concern for that particular case.
How Jury Selection Works in North Carolina | What Defendants Need to Know
Jury selection decisions shape trials before the first witness takes the stand. Defense lawyers who understand the statutory framework, know when to challenge for cause, and manage peremptory challenges thoughtfully give their clients the foundation a fair trial requires. Bill Powers brings more than three decades of North Carolina courtroom experience to every case, regularly teaches trial practice to lawyers across the state, and is a recipient of the John B. McMillan Distinguished Service Award.
If you are facing a criminal charge in North Carolina, contact Bill Powers and the criminal defense lawyers at Powers Law Firm at 704-342-4357 or Bill@CarolinaAttorneys.com