Introduction  There are more than 115,000 investigated reports of child abuse or neglect in North Carolina annually. Over 33 percent of child abuse victims in North Carolina are Black children. In contrast, Black individuals make up only 22 percent of the state’s population.   There is no question that the state has a duty to protect these children from abuse, but this …

The Fourth Amendment  Every individual has a constitutional right to Fourth Amendment protection. To be exact, it is “[t]he right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures . . ..” Searches and seizures are presumed to be unreasonable if conducted without a warrant, subject to a few exceptions. The purpose of the …

In August 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division (“DOJ”) announced and entered into a settlement agreement with the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction (“NCDAC”) to resolve allegations of disability discrimination under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The agreement reflects ongoing federal enforcement efforts addressing disability rights compliance in correctional settings.  The agreement addresses longstanding failures to provide adequate communication …

Since taking office in 2025, President Donald Trump has issued a flurry of executive orders. Many of these executive orders have had profound effects on minority communities. Executive Order 14342 is no exception. The Executive Order, named “Taking Steps to End Cashless Bail to Protect Americans”, has the stated purpose of “[m]aintaining order and public safety”, but instead of fulfilling this purpose, the Order amplifies the racial undertones …

Elon Musk is the CEO of xAI, the company handling all AI matters on X, formerly known as Twitter. xAI is recognized as one of the world’s leading AI companies, valued at around $230 billion as of January 2026. The company utilizes a generative AI chatbot called ‘Grok.’ In 2024, xAI established plans for building a supercomputer in Memphis, Tennessee to power and enhance Grok’s AI chatbot capabilities. A high-functioning supercomputer has the capabilities to solve …

Every child in the 21st century American school system lives with the morbid understanding that their classroom could be the next target in the long line of school shootings that has haunted this country. Children as young as five years old participate in active shooter drills at school, which have become as routine as fire drills. Despite the devastating impact school shootings have had on Americans, very …

Doe v. McFadden joins a growing series of cases that underscore what has been described as a nationwide pattern of political repression and anti-Muslim sentiment. Far from an isolated incident, Doe’s allegations mirror a series of similar lawsuits across the country. Over the past decade, several law enforcement agencies have been sued over claims that officers forced Muslim women to remove their hijabs—a religious head covering—during …

The Facts  In June of 2025, the Trump administration debuted its Operation At Large nationwide initiative in Los Angeles, California. Operation At Large, led by ICE, aims to fulfill President Trump’s goal of “crackdown” on immigration by deploying “patrols of armed and masked immigration agents” to various locations, such as Home Depots, churches, parks, and bus stops. Born out of this initiative …

On September 8, 2025, the Supreme Court ruled on the government’s application for a stay of a district court’s temporary restraining order in Noem v. Vasquez Perdomo. This came after both the district court and the Ninth Circuit denied the application for a stay. The district court’s July 11, 2025, TRO restricted the government from, among other things, stopping suspected undocumented immigrants in the Central District of California based solely on any combination of …

Anyone who watches legal dramas like CSI or Law & Order has heard of a party asserting their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination to avoid making certain statements on the witness stand. This assertion comes from a specific clause of the Fifth Amendment, which states that “[n]o person… shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against …