State v. Curtis, COA24-204, ___ N.C. App. ___ (Feb. 19, 2025)

In this Wake County case, defendant appealed after pleading guilty to felony death by vehicle, felony serious injury by vehicle, and driving while impaired, challenging the sentencing he received for his convictions. The Court of Appeals vacated and remanded for resentencing.

In January of 2022, defendant caused a head-on collision that killed two passengers in the other vehicle and injured several more. Officers found used nitrous oxide containers in the vehicle, and defendant admitted to also using alcohol and marijuana the evening of the collision. Defendant pleaded guilty pursuant to an agreement that avoided second-degree murder; the State stipulated to a mitigating factor that defendant “has accepted responsibility for [his] criminal conduct.” Slip Op. at 3. Defendant waived his right to appeal in the plea agreement. However, along with his appeal in this case, defendant filed a writ of certiorari, which the Court of Appeals granted to consider this case. The State did not oppose defendant’s writ and conceded that an error was committed. 

Defendant argued on appeal that the trial court failed to consider his mitigating factor that he and the State stipulated to in the plea agreement. The Court of Appeals agreed, quoting State v. Albert, 312 N.C. 567, 579 (1985), for the proposition that “when the State stipulates to the facts supporting the finding of a mitigating factor, ‘the trial court err[s] in failing to find this fact in mitigation.’” Slip Op. at 7. Defendant also argued he was entitled to a different trial judge on remand. The court disagreed on that point, noting that the trial judge was not exposed to any prejudicial information beyond the plea agreement, and defendant could not demonstrate a risk to his bargained-for agreement if the case was remanded to the same judge. Thus the court vacated and remanded to the trial court for resentencing.