Carolina Criminal Defense & DUI Lawyer Updates
The North Carolina Court of Appeals’ recent decision in State v. Ruffin, ___ N.C. App. ___ (Mar. 5, 2025), provides 
guidance on marijuana identification in the post-hemp era. The defendant in Ruffin was convicted of multiple drug offenses, including the sale and delivery of marijuana, arising from a controlled buy in 2021.
On appeal, the accused challenged the identification of the seized plant material as marijuana (arguing it could have been legal hemp), the admissibility of both lay and expert testimony under the North Carolina Rules of Evidence, the sufficiency of the evidence to distinguish marijuana from hemp, the trial court’s jury instructions, and several aspects of his sentencing
The Court of Appeals affirmed the convictions and sentences. This article analyzes Ruffin and its implications for North Carolina law, with specific reference to Rule 702 Testimony by Expert Witnesses.
impartial jury despite his fame and the salacious allegations? This is no ordinary case – nearly everyone has heard of P. Diddy. The worry is that half the jury pool could be star-struck fans while the other half have already judged him guilty based on headlines.
tests, and standardized field sobriety tests.
and medical conditions that could affect impairment assessments. This article examines the different types of experts used in North Carolina DWI cases, how courts determine whether their testimony is admissible under Rule 702, and what legal considerations apply when presenting expert evidence in court.
Department of Transportation – Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) may move forward with revoking your license for failing to submit to breath and/or blood testing. 
technical procedures—such as chemical breath tests, blood alcohol analyses, and field sobriety testing—that lay jurors or even judges may not fully understand. An expert witness, properly qualified and admitted, can provide insight into such complex matters both for the prosecution and the defense.
blood testing in a DWI case. Law enforcement may suspect drug involvement, or the driver may be unable (or unwilling) to provide a valid breath sample on an approved device. DUI fatalities tend to involve blood testing, as it the more accurate method to confirm the different possible sources of impairment and the respective concentrations of each.
preliminary roadside screening with a handheld device, the real focal point often comes from the Intoximeter EC/IR II machine. This desktop breath-testing device measures deep-lung air and generates an official reading that prosecutors regularly use as evidence at trial.
(SFSTs) to gauge whether enough evidence exists for an arrest or further chemical testing. Roadside dexterity tests—commonly the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN) test, the Walk-and-Turn test, and the One-Leg Stand test—remain a subject of debate. Questions arise about whether these tests are truly “standardized,” whether they reliably they measure impairment or are overly subjective, and how courts treat SFSTs as evidence.
screening at the roadside and an evidentiary test under the state’s implied consent laws. These procedures are guided by statutes like G.S. 20-16.2, which defines the expectations placed on a driver once probable cause is established. Although both tests relate to detecting alcohol, they serve different functions and carry different legal consequences.