From News-Record

2013-09-26 —A 2006 state law directed North Carolina’s Administrative Office of the Courts to post on its website detailed information about the disposition of DWI cases in each county.

This is what it offers.

Not nearly good enough, State Auditor Beth Wood says in a report issued this week.

The AOC annual statistical accounting does not provide other required and useful information, such as: “Show the types of dispositions for the entire State by county, by judge, by prosecutor, and by defense attorney.”

The Charlotte Observer provides background in this story.

A series of stories it ran in 2004 reported high rates of DWI dismissals in several jurisdictions, with some judges much more likely to throw out charges than others — even when the defendants blew above the 0.08 standard for drunken driving.

The legislature responded by strengthening DWI laws and by demanding more accountability.

Exposing lenient judges, who are elected officials, could make them less inclined to let off drunken drivers — even those with high-powered, influential defense attorneys who make nice contributions to those judges’ election campaigns. ….MORE