October 2019 Newsletter
The Durham County District Attorney’s Office Monthly Newsletter highlights the work DCDAO staff do in and out of the courthouse.
In The Community

As part of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October, Durham DA’s Office staff participated in a discussion hosted by the Durham County Department of Social Services. Assistant District Attorney Lindsey Spain and Legal Assistant Christie Keith were panelists at Connected by Coercion: A Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Human Trafficking Forum. Both are part of the DA’s Office’s Special Victims Unit and work on cases involving sexual assault and violence against young people.
During the panel, they talked about prosecuting domestic violence and sexual assault cases and the challenges in bringing those cases to court. Spain talked about the importance of connecting survivors to resources and of listening to survivors about whether they are ready for their case to go to court.
The Durham DA’s Office prioritizes domestic violence as well as other serious offenses and works closely with law enforcement and community organizations like the Durham Crisis Response Center on domestic violence, human trafficking and sexual assault task forces. More than 10 percent of pending homicides in Durham are domestic violence related. In other cases the victim and defendant were not in one of the types of relationships that constitutes domestic violence under North Carolina law, but a romantic relationship does factor into their connection. The Durham DA’s Office generally considers these cases under a broader definition of domestic violence and they may also be prosecuted by the Special Victims Unit.
Also in October, members of the Durham DA’s Office attended the North Carolina State Bar Opioid Summit.

Deputy Chief of Staff Michelle Cofield, lead Drug and Property Crime prosecutor Daniel Spiegel, and Deputy Chief for Legal and Community Affairs Brenda Ford Harding learned about the science of opioid use disorder, the economic costs of the opioid epidemic, and how attorneys in different fields are working with individuals impacted by opioids in our state.

DA Deberry and Durham County Sheriff Clarence Birkhead answered tough questions during a student-led town hall at the School for Creative Studies. Students asked about the role of plea arrangements in the court system, how historic cycles of over-policing and over-prosecuting communities of color have led to racially disparate sentences, and efforts by the Durham DA’s Office to keep young people out of the adult court system.
DA Deberry spoke about criminal justice debt and the collateral consequences of criminal records during the Pathways to Prosperity Conference hosted by The Collaborative, which works to close the wealth gap in North Carolina. Durham was highlighted as an example at the conference for the DEAR (Durham Expunction and Restoration) program, which, in conjunction with the DA’s Office and local judges, has helped more than 4,000 people get relief for unpaid traffic court debt that had caused their drivers’ licenses to be revoked. In addition, the DEAR program has assisted more than 700 people with expunction petitions to remove old charges and convictions from their records.
In the Office

DA’s Office staff participated in a training on recently passed crime victims’ rights legislation. A constitutional amendment approved by voters in 2018 and implementing legislation that followed this summer mirror many of the rights and procedures already enshrined under the North Carolina law. The new legislation, however, expands what types of crimes are covered. More information about victims’ rights can be found via the Conference of District Attorneys.
Iris Morales was sworn in as an assistant district attorney on October 14. She has seven years of experience with defense law and previously interned with the Orange County District Attorney’s Office. A graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina Central University School of Law, she will join the Traffic team.
In the Courts
Assistant District Attorney Alyson Grine tried a 2018 murder case in which the defendant was accused of shooting a man outside of his grandmother’s apartment. Following a two-week trial in which jurors deliberated for nearly three days, a jury found the defendant guilty of first-degree murder. Grine put forth evidence that the defendant walked with a distinctive limp like the person caught on surveillance video at the crime scene and was known to carry an uncommon gun consistent with the evidence and the injuries suffered by the victim. Grine also established a tight time-frame to prove the defendant, who had previously served a prison sentence for a murder in the early 1980s, was the person who shot the father of six.
On October 23, Assistant District Attorney Ray Griffis closed a 2018 homicide case in which a man died two weeks after being shot by an acquaintance. The defendant entered an Alford plea, in which a person acknowledges the evidence against him but does not admit guilt. Through close communication with the victim’s family, ADA Griffis was able to dispose of the homicide case in less than a year, resolving several other unrelated charges through the same plea.
Upcoming Events
DA Deberry and Durham Police Chief Cerelyn “C.J.” Davis will participate in a panel discussion called “Sister to Sister: A Talk on Sexual Assault.” The discussion is being hosted by the Durham Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. The event will talk place November 16 at 10:00 a.m. at County Administrative Building II, located at 201 East Main Street.

