Elon Law professor Michael Rich provides analysis of criminal proceedings related to defendants' rights to a speedy trial, in a September 17 Wilmington Star News article about a North Carolina woman who is awaiting trial after being charged with gambling and slot machine possession charges five years ago.
In the report, Rich states that five years seems is an extraordinary amount of time between a charge and a trial in a criminal proceeding, but also notes there is no exact science for demonstrating when a defendant has waited too long for a trial.
The article notes that many states set time limitations for when a case should be resolved, but North Carolina is not one of them. Where state law is less clear on the matter, Rich notes that in federal court, a trial must start within 70 days from the time criminal information is first filed.
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