Durham County criminal justice 2020: Reform, violent crime, the dog leash murder case
Our reporters are writing about what they expect to be some of the big topics on their beats in 2020.
In 2018 and 2019, Durham County and city residents voted in a sheriff, district attorney and City Council members who promised to fight racist bias in criminal justice and improve outcomes in systems that have historically penalized the poor and people of color.
The shift from a more law-and-order focus, along with a bump in shootings, has fueled debate among those seeking reforms, such as holding fewer people in jail on cash bail, and others including residents in high-crime neighborhoods backing a call for for more police officers.
In 2018, violent crime in Durham fell 13%, the first decrease since 2013. Mayor Pro Tem Jillian Johnson and others cited that and other factors when the City Council voted 4-3 in 2019 to reject Police Chief C.J. Davis’ request for more officers, saying they would prefer to spend money addressing underlying causes of crime.
In 2020, it will be interesting to see whether Davis again seeks more officers and what specific proposals, if any, those who opposed her request this year offer in response to violent crime.
Violent crime prosecution
Jan. 1 will mark District Attorney Satana Deberry’s first year in office, during which she restructured her department to better handle violent crime, domestic violence and other prosecutions.
Deberry’s platform included focusing on the individuals who make Durham unsafe while addressing racist biases in the criminal justice system, diverting low-level cases and ending school-based criminal referrals for juveniles.
In 2020, we’ll examine how Deberry’s office handles violent and gun-related crimes — including plea deals, dismissals and overturned convictions, and trials — with reactions from victims, their families, and community members.
Dog-leash murder
Alexander Bishop’s attorney successfully argued in Superior Court that the 17-year-old was unfairly treated by an investigator seeing evidence in the first-degree murder case.
In February, Alexander was charged with murder in the April 2018 death of his wealthy father, William Bishop. Alexander told police he had found his father unresponsive in a big, leather chair with a dog leash wrapped around his neck and the family’s Labrador retriever still attached.
After a days-long hearing, Superior Court Judge Orlando Hudson threw out most of the evidence in the case, ruling the investigator had been “untruthful” or showed a “reckless disregard for the truth” in search-warrant requests.
The District Attorney’s Office is appealing the ruling. Recent court filings also show Bishop is asking Hudson to find Deberry and others in contempt for not sharing all the available evidence in the case.
Other cases to watch in 2020 include the prosecution of the men charged with killing 9-year-old Z-Yon Person, along with the men charged with the 2018 killing of Chinese restaurant owner Hong Zheng, which was picked up by federal prosecutors this year.
Virginia Bridges covers public safety and the criminal justice system. For smart, reliable and timely coverage of the issues you care about, subscribe to The News & Observer at newsobserver.com/subscribe or subscribe to The Herald-Sun at heraldsun.com/subscribe.
