Paul Newby Coverage

DRAUGHON DRAWS: Taking the N.C. Supreme Court to school?

Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024 -- Capitol Broadcasting Company's editorial cartoonist.

Editorial: Fate of public education rests with state's high court. It must not let our kids down

Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024 -- The N.C. Supreme Court needs to stand for the future of the state, the promise to our children and a quality education in every classroom and school.

Editorial: State court's integrity diminished by Justice Berger Jr.'s refusal to recuse in Leandro case

Sunday, Feb. 18, 2024 -- As much as we hope our judges possess a strong knowledge of the law, we also expect them to have a firm grip on common sense. Our hopes and expectations, when it comes to the majority of those sitting on North Carolina's Supreme Court bench, were dashed by this latest decision.

Editorial: Newby transforms N.C. courts to playground to settle petty political feuds

Friday, Jan. 5, 2024 -- The events of this week are not about the administration of justice. Chief Justice Paul Newby and others have manipulated our state's judicial system to settle a political feud.

DRAUGHON DRAWS: Chief Justice Newby plays games with N.C. courts

Friday, Jan. 5, 2023 -- Capitol Broadcasting Company's editorial cartoonist.

Editorial: Does N.C. Constitution really endorse partisan legislative dictatorship?

Saturday, Dec. 23, 2023 -- Did the drafters of North Carolina's state constitution intend for the majority political party in the General Assembly to enshrine itself in power for perpetuity? To follow the contorted logic of state Supreme Court Chief Justice Paul Newby, the answer is yes.

DRAUGHON DRAWS: The 'education' of a chief justice?

Saturday, Dec. 23, 2023 -- Capitol Broadcasting Company's editorial cartoonist.

SETH EFFRON: Win elections by getting fewer people to vote?

Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023 -- Will that potential dampening of voter enthusiasm - because of uncontested local races - aid Republicans in statewide races? Could uncontested Republicans in two congressional districts diminish engagement among significant blocks of GOP voters?

AARON MENDELSON: Not just the Supreme Court: Ethics troubles plague state high courts, too

Thursday, Dec. 14, 2023 -- North Carolina's Supreme Court chief justice heard cases despite a conflict of interest. Experts say judicial ethics at state high courts everywhere don't receive the scrutiny they deserve.

Aaron Mendelson, Center for Public Integrity

Editorial: N.C. justices must see legislators as peoples' representatives, not their dictators

Monday, Dec. 11, 2023 -- "All political power is vested in and derived from the people." The State Constitution does not say a legislature with frequent elections is omnipotent, unanswerable to the other equal branches of the government - including the executive and judicial.

Editorial: Respect law, not partisanship, must be state Supreme Court majority's guide

Thursday, Dec. 7, 2023 -- If the current N.C. high court, regardless of those justices who end up considering the latest Leandro appeal, respect the State Constitution and the rights of children; if they respect the doctrine of stare decisis, they will continue to require the implementation of the remedial plan to assure a sound basic education everywhere in the state. North Carolina will be better for it.

In Earls investigation, federal judge wrangles with key question: How political can NC Supreme Court justices get?

North Carolina Supreme Court Justice Anita Earls Earls is suing the state Judicial Standards Commission to stop an ethics investigation she says is targeting her for critiques she made about racial, gender and political biases at the state's highest court.

Will Doran, WRAL state government reporter

Editorial: Make redistricting public, fair and nonpartisan

Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2023 -- Contrary to the behavior of North Carolina's legislative leaders, elections aren't the private providence of the elected. They are the way the citizens grant their legislators the privilege of representing them and nothing about that process should be secret.

Editorial: Morals and fair play take a back seat to expediency in the legislature

Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023 -- It is no exaggeration to say the seven justices of the N.C. Supreme Court will determine if the General Assembly is the devil's playground or a temple of democracy.

Editorial: Legislators avert their gaze when confronted with failure to expand Medicaid

Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023 -- Anthony Brooks, DeAnna Brandon and the thousands like them can't get the life-saving healthcare they need. Their lives are hanging by a thread without a safety net. Expand Medicaid now.

Editorial: Hyper-partisan high court shatters trust in N.C.'s judicial system

Thursday, Sept. 7, 2023 -- Trust in our judicial system is fragile and the damage already being done will take time and work to restore it. An important step would be to remove partisanship in the selection of our judges and justices.

DRAUGHON DRAWS: A muted justice?

Friday, Sept. 1, 2023 --- Capitol Broadcasting Company's editorial cartoonist.

DAWN BLAGROVE & MELISSA PRICE KROMM: Partisan extremism threatens N.C. courts

Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023 -- It's time we tell politicians to cut these extremist proposals from the budget and stop using our judicial commissions as a cudgel against honest, hard-working judges. It's time we take back our courts.

'Taking us back to Jim Crow': Black lawyers say NC Supreme Court investigation motivated by racism

The investigation, which has the potential to remove Justice Anita Earls from office, is based on comments she made highlighting racial and gender bias within the state courts system.

Will Doran, WRAL state government reporter

Editorial: State's high court must uphold the law not partisanship

Monday, Aug. 28, 2023 -- Courts have the authority - the duty - to review the acts of the legislative and executive branches of government to determine their constitutionality. The justices of North Carolina's Supreme Court need to live up to that fundamental responsibility. Further, they should do it in a transparent manner assuring North Carolinians it is the law and constitution that comprises the foundation for their decisions.

Editorial: U.S. Supreme Court thwarts N.C. legislature's attack on democracy

Wednesday, June 28, 2023 -- To fully embrace how far off the rails the train wreck that is the North Carolina General Assembly and state Supreme Court are, look no further than Tuesday's U.S. Supreme Court decision.

Editorial: 'The people' are the last folks legislators seem to care about

Thursday, May 4, 2023 -- The focus of the legislature has been on distracting so-called "cultural agenda" matters that occupy legislators' time and attention while more serious matters - assuring every child has access to a quality education, protecting women's health, appropriate spending on the state's most fundamental needs - get little public attention or discussion.

Editorial: N.C. Supreme Court opens door to rigged elections

Monday, May 1, 2023 -- Should the N.C. Supreme Court's gerrymandering decision stand, it will silence millions of voters and permanently entrench the power of a political party that comprises less than a third of the state's 7.2 million voters.

DRAUGHON DRAWS: Not-so-'fair' elections

Monday, May 1, 2023 -- Capitol Broadcasting Company's editorial cartoonist.

Editorial: Justice Newby needs to do the job voters elected him to do

Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023 -- North Carolina's Constitution specifically sets the judicial, executive and legislative branches of government as "forever separate and distinct" so each can be a check and balance on the others. It is Chief Justice Paul Newby's job to protect the Constitution. He's been shirking that responsibility.