State v. Washington, ___ N.C. App. ___ (Oct. 1, 2024)

In this New Hanover County case, defendant appealed the judgment finding him guilty of violating a domestic violence prevention order, arguing error in denying his motion to dismiss for insufficient evidence. The Court of Appeals disagreed, finding no error.

In March of 2020, defendant’s wife applied for a domestic violence prevention order; defendant consented to the order and it was entered in New Hanover County District Court. In December of 2020, defendant entered the restaurant where his wife worked and began yelling at her, despite the order requiring him to stay away from her. Defendant willingly left the restaurant after being confronted by the manager, but when leaving, he left a polaroid photograph on his wife’s vehicle in the parking lot.

On appeal, defendant argued there was insufficient evidence he “knowingly” went to the restaurant where his wife worked. The Court of Appeals rejected this argument, distinguishing the circumstances of a case relied on by defendant, State v. Williams, 226 N.C. App. 393 (2013), from the current case. In Williams, the defendant was walking in a parking structure near a public mall where the victim worked, as opposed to the current case, where defendant entered, and proceeded to yell at, his wife in the restaurant where she worked. The court explained that “defendant did actually observe, communicate with, and allegedly, harass, [the victim].” Slip Op. at 5. The court concluded that the State’s evidence demonstrated defendant knowingly violated the order.