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Can Maryland's medical board discipline a doctor for pressuring opposing expert witnesses during his own malpractice trial?
In this 1979 opinion, the Maryland Attorney General concluded that the Commission on Medical Discipline had jurisdiction to discipline a physician for pressuring opposing expert witnesses during his…
Does the State Budget Manual, which dictates how agencies prepare and execute the budget, count as 'rules' under North Carolina's Administrative Procedures Act, and if so does it have to be filed with the Attorney General and go through the standard rulemaking procedure?
Yes to both, with exceptions. The 1979 AG concluded that portions of the Budget Manual that are 'rules' under G.S. 150A-58 must be filed with the Attorney General (under Article 5, Publication of…
Three configurations: (1) Can public assistance pay for care in a rest home owned by an employee of a State Alcoholic Rehabilitation Center? (2) Same, but the home is owned by a corporation where the employee is officer or shareholder? (3) The home is rented from an employee of an area mental health, mental retardation and substance abuse authority?
The 1979 AG answered no for a home owned by a State Alcoholic Rehabilitation Center employee and no for one owned by a corporation in which that employee was an officer or shareholder. It answered…
Can a North Carolina city be served with a garnishment for child support when the noncustodial parent is a city employee, or does sovereign immunity protect the city from garnishment proceedings?
Cities are not immune. The 1979 AG concluded that the general rule (governments cannot be garnished without statutory authorization) does not control under G.S. 110-136, because the statute starts…
Was property on a Washington Indian reservation automatically exempt from state property tax in 1979?
No. The 1979 AG distinguished ownership and property type. Non-Indian ownership generally was not exempt merely because of reservation location; qualifying tribal or resident-member personal…
When a sheriff's deputy or police officer serves or tries to serve a civil summons, does North Carolina law require the court to add a process fee to the case costs and collect it, then send the money to the right governmental unit?
Yes. The 1979 AG concluded that G.S. 7A-311(a)(1) requires the fee to be assessed, collected and remitted whether the officer successfully serves the process or only attempts to serve it. The…
Did a Washington school board have to hold a public hearing when a parent objected to a classroom film?
Under the 1979 statutes, the AG said a parent’s complaint about a teaching film required evaluation in a public hearing. The board or its administrative staff could conduct the hearing, and the…
Could a Washington county assessor value new construction below true and fair value to match older assessments?
The 1979 AG said no under the statutes then in force. New construction had to be listed at full true and fair value, even in an area not scheduled for that year’s cyclical revaluation.
In a worthless check prosecution, can the prosecuting witness get the new $5 witness fee added to costs if the witness wasn't actually present when the magistrate took payment or when the defendant pleaded guilty in court?
No. The 1979 AG concluded that the witness must be in actual attendance on the court to be entitled to the fee. G.S. 14-107(5)'s new fee provision (added by Chapter 837, Session Laws of 1979) is an…
When the State of North Carolina is the majority stockholder of a railroad company chartered as a private corporation, can the railroad sell or buy land on its own, or does it need the Governor and Council of State to sign off first?
Sales (dispositions) need Governor and Council approval; ordinary purchases (acquisitions) do not. The 1979 AG read G.S. 124-5 as covering only dispositions, leases, mortgages, and other…
When a person under 18 with no prior convictions has three misdemeanor charges consolidated for trial and gets a sentence within the limit for a single offense, can the judge expunge the whole batch under G.S. 15-223?
Yes. The 1979 AG concluded that consolidated misdemeanor charges receiving a single-offense sentence should be treated as one misdemeanor for expungement purposes. The statute is remedial and should…
In 1979, could a parent let another adult give liquor to a minor child in Washington?
The AG said a parent’s or guardian’s verbal or written permission could be a defense under the specific furnishing statute for a single occasion. General or continuing permission was insufficient,…
Could Washington’s Legislative Budget Committee audit a joint public-power agency in 1979?
The AG said yes. Although the agency was audited as a municipal corporation, the committee’s authority to review local governments receiving shared state revenues, read with the 1979 appropriation,…
Can a North Carolina parent satisfy the state's compulsory attendance law by teaching her child at home, either under the new 1979 nonpublic-school deregulation statutes (Articles 32A and 32B) or under the longstanding 'private school' provision in G.S. 115-166?
No to both. The 1979 AG concluded that home instruction was not a 'school of religious charter' or a 'nonpublic school' under Articles 32A and 32B, which were intended to reach only established…
Can an attorney who sits on the local Area Mental Health Board be paid for legal services he renders to a private nonprofit group home that has a service contract with the Area Authority his board governs?
The 1979 AG said a paid services arrangement for an Area Mental Health Board member, as described, would appear to violate G.S. 14-234. The opinion focused on a contemplated transfer of funds to pay…
Can North Carolina use its uniform reciprocal enforcement of support law to enforce child support obligations between NC residents and residents of West Germany, the same way it enforces support orders across state lines within the U.S.?
Yes. The 1979 AG found West German support law substantially similar to North Carolina's for URESA reciprocity under N.C. Gen. Stat. 52A-3(13). The opinion describes West German child support,…
Under the 1977 rewrite of the North Carolina statutes governing Area Mental Health Authorities, does a satellite unit operated by an Area Mental Health Authority require its own license? What about a private agency that contracts with the Area Mental Health Authority to provide services that are statutorily required of the Authority?
Yes to both. The 1979 AG concluded that under G.S. 122-35.51 (effective July 1, 1977) every 'area mental health facility' operated under Chapter 122 must obtain a license issued by the Department of…
For Washington superior court judges in 1979, did Social Security wages include the county-paid half of salary?
Yes. The AG said the full statutory salary was the wage base for OASI contributions and coverage even though the state and counties each paid a portion. A judge held one office, and the wage…
After the 1975 reorganization of North Carolina state government, who actually runs the Office of State Personnel, the Secretary of Administration or the State Personnel Director?
The State Personnel Director. The 1979 AG concluded that the Office of State Personnel was a largely independent agency placed under the Department of Administration only for organizational…
When a driver crashes into someone because the driver did not slow down even though the driver was within the posted speed limit, is failure-to-decrease-speed only a civil negligence question, or can the State also charge it as a crime?
Both. The 1979 AG said N.C.G.S. § 20-141(m) created a misdemeanor under § 20-176 and supplied a civil standard of care. It also said safety-statute violations may be criminal if culpably negligent…
In the late 1970s, could a South Dakota National Guard member taking a Board of Regents extension course off-campus get the reduced-tuition benefit, and did the 'C average' requirement mean the average for the most recent semester or the cumulative average across all college work?
Yes on the extension course. The reduced tuition benefit under SDCL 33-6-5 reached any undergraduate course in a state institution, not just on-campus courses. And the 'C average' requirement was…
In North Carolina, if a woman who is 22 weeks pregnant learns through testing that her fetus has a severe genetic disorder that will leave the child severely intellectually disabled or unlikely to live past infancy, can she request and obtain an abortion based on that diagnosis alone under the state's abortion statutes as they stood in 1979?
No, under the 1979 AG reading of the statutes then in force. The 1979 AG concluded that G.S. 14-45.1(b) authorized post-20-week abortions only when there was a 'substantial risk that continuance of…
If a North Carolina National Guardsman is hurt at a federally required two-week summer training camp and the federal government already pays his medical bills, full duty pay, and other federal benefits, can he also collect North Carolina workers' compensation from the State?
On the facts presented, no: the federal government had apparently treated the guardsman as called or ordered to training and paid his full duty pay and benefits, so the AG said he was not a state…
How did South Carolina’s 1979 homestead exemption treat residency, incapacity, and out of state disability findings?
The 1979 AG said the one year residency condition had to be met by the prior December 31, a person who lacked mental capacity could not voluntarily change legal residence, and a disability finding…
If the State Treasurer's Retirement and Health Benefits Division gets a request from someone other than the retirement system member, asking for information from that specific member's individual retirement account, does the Division have to turn over the records, or can it withhold them based on its internal rule that says individual retirement benefits won't be publicly disclosed?
Yes, the Division has to turn over the records. The 1979 AG concluded that individual member retirement account information is a 'public record' under G.S. 132-1, and any person may seek access…
Could a Washington coroner take jurisdiction when a seriously ill person died without a recent in-person medical visit?
The 1979 AG said yes under the statute’s sudden-death clause when the illness was not apparent to people around the person and no practitioner had physically attended them within the preceding 36…
After a person is convicted of driving under the influence, can the district court still grant the person a limited driving privilege through a motion for appropriate relief that the person files more than ten days after the trial?
Generally no. The 1979 AG concluded that under G.S. 15A-1411 and 15A-1415(b), a defendant could only obtain post-judgment relief through a motion for appropriate relief filed more than 10 days after…
Did Washington’s 1979 annual-leave cap apply to exempt staff, judges’ staff and governor-appointed agency leaders?
The AG said the state annual-leave statute covered all three government branches, classified and exempt employees, and governor-appointed directors and board members. Accrual beyond 30 working days…
Could a Washington merchant bring a civil shoplifting claim for stolen gasoline without proving actual loss?
The 1979 AG said gasoline offered for sale at a pump was covered by the civil conversion statute. It also said a merchant could seek the statutory penalties without alleging actual damages, and a…
When someone signs and delivers a deed giving real property to a North Carolina county, does the county legally own the land on the date the deed is signed, or only on the later date when the county board of commissioners formally votes to accept the gift?
Only on the date the board of commissioners formally accepts the deed. The AG concluded that NC law requires county actions to be taken by the board of commissioners, so a deed signed in 1968 but…
Could a guilty plea to aggravated first-degree murder have led to life without parole under Washington’s 1979 sentencing statute?
No. The 1979 AG said that sentencing route required a special proceeding after a jury guilty verdict. A guilty plea did not trigger it, so the statute called for life imprisonment under its separate…
After a DUI conviction, the court can order the defendant to complete an alcohol rehabilitation course. Can the judge make the program's tuition fee part of the court costs, have the clerk of court collect it along with the other costs, and then forward it to the rehab provider?
No. The 1979 AG concluded that Article 28 of Chapter 7A (the uniform-cost statute, § 7A-304 et seq.) defines the costs the clerk may collect in the trial divisions, and a third-party rehabilitation…
Is a notary public considered a public officer in North Carolina, and if so, can a notary hold one appointive office with a city and one appointive office with a county at the same time, or does that count as three public offices and run afoul of the constitutional limit?
Notary yes, three offices no. The 1979 AG concluded that a notary public is a public officer under North Carolina law, and that under Article VI, Section 9 of the State Constitution as supplemented…
Did Washington’s train bell and whistle statute apply at a private farm-road crossing?
The 1979 AG said the statute’s misdemeanor rule did not apply to a strictly private road crossing. A railroad could still face a civil negligence claim if its warning was inadequate under the…
When North Carolina amended its intangibles tax in 1978 to reach money on deposit in stock-owned savings and loan associations, did the tax also apply to deposits in federally chartered stock savings and loan associations, or did federal law block the state from taxing those federal deposits?
No. Although the 1979 AG read the state tax statute as covering deposits in federal stock-owned savings and loan associations, it concluded that taxing those deposits while leaving deposits in…
Could a Washington county create a reserve fund just for uninsured tort claims, and keep the investment interest?
The 1979 AG said the general claims-fund law did not authorize that narrow fund, but the cumulative-reserve-fund law did. Investment earnings belonged to the reserve fund after the treasurer’s…
After a Washington sewer district merged into an irrigation district, did county approval of a sewer expansion plan remain required?
The 1979 AG said no under the cited sewer-district statutes. After the merger dissolved the sewer district, the surviving irrigation district inherited its powers, but those statutes applied to…
Would a proposed Washington school immunization requirement with medical and parental exemptions have been constitutional?
The 1979 AG concluded that the proposal would have been constitutional if enacted as drafted. It conditioned school and day-care attendance on vaccination records, an approved schedule or an…
If a moped (a bicycle with a small helper motor) is going faster than 20 miles per hour, does it lose its 'exempt bicycle with helper motor' status and become a regulated motor vehicle?
Yes, if the engine is doing the work. The 1979 AG concluded that N.C.G.S. § 20-4.01(23) and (27)(d) exempt bicycles with helper motors only if the engine produces 'ordinary pedaling speeds up to a…
Did a Washington divorce order for future child support or maintenance count as a judgment in 1979?
The Attorney General said yes. Temporary support orders and final dissolution decrees calling for future payments were judgments for entry in the county execution docket and could support a…
Could a Washington school district outsource all lunchroom operations to a food-service contractor in 1979?
The Attorney General said no under the statute then in force. A private contractor could prepare and serve food, but the district could not assign purchasing, money collection, tax returns, and…
Could a Washington public college host political forums, conventions, and campaign activity on campus in 1979?
The Attorney General allowed nondiscriminatory candidate forums, properly rented party conventions, and student-sponsored issue meetings. It allowed personally handed campaign literature on the…
When a doctor writes standing orders telling a nurse to give certain medications under specified conditions, can the nurse legally carry them out? And does it make a difference whether the medications are controlled substances?
Under this 1979 opinion, a registered nurse approved by the Board of Medical Examiners to perform medical acts could carry out a physician's standing orders. Even an approved nurse could not carry…
The City of Raleigh made a $12,500 appropriation to the Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority and conditioned the grant on the Authority signing a nondiscrimination agreement. Can a city use a funding appropriation to impose policy conditions on a separately governed regional airport authority?
No. The 1979 AG concluded that the Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority was created by Chapter 168 of the 1939 Session Laws as a quasi-municipal corporation governed by directors appointed by the cities…
Does someone need a North Carolina general contractor's license if they're an employee of the owner who manages a construction project worth more than $30,000?
Yes, if the employee has overall supervision and control of the project. The 1979 AG concluded that an employee of an owner who has overall authority and control of a $30,000-or-more construction…
When a sheriff is told to enforce a court judgment against someone who owes money, how hard does the sheriff have to look for the debtor's property before reporting back to the court that the debtor has nothing to seize?
The sheriff must use due diligence to locate the debtor's property. A general report of insolvency does not excuse a search: the opinion calls for reasonable inquiry and says the sheriff's other…
Who decides who gets a key to the register of deeds' office, the register of deeds or the county board of commissioners?
The register of deeds. The 1979 AG concluded that even though G.S. 153A-169 makes the board of county commissioners responsible for supervising the maintenance, repair, and use of county property…
When the North Carolina Child Support Enforcement Program is trying to locate a parent who has abandoned and deserted children, can it force a state, county, or city agency to hand over otherwise confidential personnel records about that parent, even though state personnel records statutes normally prohibit releasing them for use in a criminal prosecution like criminal nonsupport?
Yes. The 1979 AG concluded that G.S. 110-139, the parent locator confidentiality override enacted in 1975, supersedes the State, county, and city personnel-confidentiality statutes (G.S. 126-24(5),…
Could a Washington county bypass city bidding rules when running a joint solid-waste system in 1979?
The Attorney General said no. As administrator and agent for participating cities, the county had to follow their applicable bidding requirements; for certain hauling contracts, it also had to bid…
Could a Washington legislator be arrested for a traffic misdemeanor while the legislature was in session in 1979?
The Attorney General said yes. It interpreted the constitutional arrest privilege as limited to civil arrest and concluded that a legislator could be arrested for a criminal traffic offense at any…
When South Dakota's psychology licensing law sunsets on July 1, 1979 and the Board of Examiners of Psychologists ceases to exist, can the Board's leftover funds be used to hold continuing education workshops for licensed psychologists, or must the money revert to the state general fund?
Must revert to general fund. SDCL chapter 36-27 authorized the Board to set continuing-education requirements (SDCL 36-27-33) but not to provide free CE or sponsor workshops. Implied powers don't…
Could a Washington juvenile court order diversion after the prosecutor properly filed charges in 1978?
No. The AG read the new juvenile justice law as assigning the diversion decision to the prosecutor before filing. A court could check whether the case was properly before it, but had no independent…
If the State of North Carolina (through the Wanchese Harbor Commission or a successor) operates water and sewage facilities at the Wanchese Industrial Park and bills tenants and outside hookups, does the State need a certificate from the Utilities Commission to do that?
No. The 1978 AG concluded that the Utilities Commission's regulatory authority under Chapter 62 only reaches entities that meet the statutory definition of 'public utility' in N.C.G.S. § 62-3(23),…
Under the 1978 North Carolina wage-payment law, could an employer deduct a cash register or merchandise shortage from wages, or base a bonus on the absence of shortages?
No. The 1978 AG said cash and merchandise shortage deductions violated the Uniform Wage Payment Law, even with a private agreement. It also found a wage formula unlawful if shortages caused…
Did a Washington tax district need 60 percent voter approval to exceed the 1978 property-tax levy growth limit?
The AG said a simple majority sufficed to exceed the chapter 84.55 growth limit while staying within other applicable rate caps. A proposal that also exceeded the separate constitutional and…
Can a defense lawyer or a member of the public demand copies of the chemical test operator's log, breathalyzer rights form (HP-332A), or alcoholic influence report (HP-327) from a North Carolina law enforcement agency under the public records law?
No, while held by the law enforcement agency. The 1978 AG concluded all five categories of breathalyzer-related records (chemical test operator's log, HP-332A rights form, HP-327 alcoholic influence…
If a town council member or county commissioner owns stock in a corporation, or serves as an officer of that corporation, can the town or county lawfully enter into a contract with the corporation?
The 1978 AG said a public officer who owns stock in, or serves as an officer of, a corporation cannot have that corporation contract with the public body of which the officer is a member. The…
Are the Highway Patrol's copies of a North Carolina Uniform Traffic Ticket (the District First Sergeant's transmittal copy and the issuing officer's enforcement copy with notes) public records that any member of the public can inspect, either before or after the trial of the offense?
No on all three counts. The District First Sergeant is a temporary conduit, not a 'custodian' of public records under § 132-2, and the public can get the same information from the clerk of court or…
When a North Carolina criminal court finds that a defendant lacks the mental capacity to proceed with trial and orders involuntary civil commitment proceedings under G.S. 15A-1003(a), is the defendant required to first be examined by a qualified physician at one of the facilities described in G.S. 122-58.4, or can a law enforcement officer skip that local-physician step and take the defendant directly to a regional state psychiatric hospital?
The local physician examination is required. The 1978 AG concluded that under G.S. 15A-1003(a) and the related involuntary commitment statutes, a defendant found incapable of proceeding with trial…
When someone serving a sentence in a state prison becomes mentally ill and dangerous to himself or others, who is the person responsible for filing the petition to involuntarily commit him to a mental health treatment facility?
Only a staff psychiatrist at the prison. The 1978 AG concluded that G.S. 122-85, which specifically addresses involuntary commitment of prisoners, overrode the general rule in G.S. 122-58.3 that any…
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