State v. Shuler
Annotate this Case
The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the court of appeals affirming Defendant's convictions of felony trafficking in methamphetamine and misdemeanor simple possession of marijuana, holding that a defendant does not forfeit her Fifth Amendment right to silence if she complies with N.C. Gen. Stat. 15A-905(c)(1) and gives notice of intent to offer an affirmative defense.
Prior to trial, Defendant filed a notice of her intent to rely upon the affirmative defense of duress pursuant to section 15A-905(c)(1). The jury found Defendant guilty after a trial. The court of appeals affirmed, concluding that because Defendant gave notice of her intent to assert the affirmative defense of duress before she testified, the trial court did not err in admitting, during the State's case-in-chief, a detective's testimony of Defendant's silence at the scene. The Supreme Court reversed, holding (1) a defendant does not forfeit her Fifth Amendment right to silence if she gives pretrial notice of her intent to offer the affirmative defense of duress under section 15A-905(c)(1); and (2) the State may not preemptively impeach a defendant during its case-in-chief.
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.