I was looking through the mugshots of recent arrests in Johnston County, and the charge listed on most of them is "writ of habeas corpus", which makes no sense to me.
http://www.wral.com/johnston-arrest-photos/9670185/
scroll to #10, and many others...

Also, is "Obtaining property by false pretenses" just a bullshit charge unique to North Carolina? No other state seems to do it(in fact it seems to be a Wake county thing), and it almost always seems to be just tacked on to the actual offense, like "uttering forged instrument"(writing a bad check).

School me, lawyers/cops/latin majors.

[Edited on October 10, 2011 at 10:40 PM. Reason : .]

10/10/2011 10:39:37 PM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_pretenses


it means a candy ass walked into Ali Baba's gas station and stole $100 worth of pretzels and pretended he didn't when it's clearly on film.

or when a candy ass has a new car and pretends he bought it last week from JOESCHMOE



[Edited on October 10, 2011 at 11:07 PM. Reason : .]

10/10/2011 11:06:21 PM

It seems unnecessary. Larceny or fraud should cover it.

I'm guessing they write the "writ of..." bit when the charges don't stick and they release the prisoner within 24 hours. If that's the case, why do they release the mugshots at all? If they can't even manage to write a charge on the arrest report, what right do they have to put your photo in the newspaper? Wouldn't this be libel?


Yet another question: "Why is 'conspiracy' not a thoughtcrime?" I would suppose that you have to say your plans out loud to at least one other person to get a conspiracy charge. What happens when you plan a crime alone but don't say it out loud? What would the charge be?



[Edited on October 10, 2011 at 11:21 PM. Reason : .]

[Edited on October 10, 2011 at 11:24 PM. Reason : .]

10/10/2011 11:10:44 PM

Obtaining property by false pretense (G.S. 14-100) is a catch-all charge. Best example I can think of a) person steals merchandise from Wal-Mart #1 and then goes to Wal-Mart #2 and returns the item for cash.

And a Habeas Corpus is a court order; if a judge issues a writ it shall be served. Serving a court order can include taking a person into custody. Some status offenses like a habitual felon are not crimes, but when indicted by a grand jury, you are taken in to custody (arrested) and processed. A writ (court order) was most likely issued to bring the person to court. Anytime a person is taken in to custody there is an arrest report unless it is a commitment order (this is more more of an agency policy I believe).

[Edited on October 11, 2011 at 1:16 PM. Reason : ...]

10/11/2011 1:09:28 PM

Quote :

"why do they release the mugshots at all"

i've always thought this to be bullshit. Mugshots shouldn't be available to the public until you are convicted of a crime

10/11/2011 1:10:52 PM

^But everything the police does should be public record right? Can't have it both ways.

10/11/2011 1:17:17 PM

Sure you can. Police are public servants and should be open to public scrutiny like any other public servant. Putting up mugshots of the arrested compromises the assumption of innocence.

the two are really unrelated.

10/11/2011 1:29:31 PM

^^^^ Thanks. The only definition I knew of "writ of habeas corpus" was the old "right of the prisoner to request release if no charges can be brought against him". I was wondering about what triggered a "habitual felon" arrest as well.

I suppose I prefer the mugshots being public record as well. It's better than the distopian alternative where police just make people "disappear". At least there is a public record of when every person is taken into custody so that the media can track their whereabouts later. I'm not so crazy about news agencies and magazines like The Slammer publishing them for shock value and humor.

10/11/2011 2:19:18 PM

Quote :

"^But everything the police does should be public record right? Can't have it both ways."

The system has it both ways as things stand right now.

The police can, and do, use wiretapping laws to prosecute people who tape them performing their duties in public.

10/11/2011 2:28:43 PM

Nah, not in NC. Worst you'll get here is maybe thrown in jail for the night.

10/11/2011 3:49:50 PM

i thought wire tapping was a felony, i don't know what the deal with NC is.

10/11/2011 4:09:37 PM

Wiretapping a conversation you aren't a part of is, indeed, a felony.

You can record your own conversations without the consent of the other party.

As for recording cops near you on the sidewalk, some states do consider this wiretapping. Corrupt ones like Ill. As far as I know this hasn't happened in NC and such recordings are considered just simple one-party consent.

10/11/2011 4:25:49 PM

Quote :

"What happens when you plan a crime alone but don't say it out loud? What would the charge be?"

In the case of murder, that may be considered "premeditation"; if you didn't actually commit the crime but took steps clearly intended to commit the act, it may be "attempted (crime)" but generally "conspiracy" requires more than one person to be in on it.

10/11/2011 8:58:31 PM