Williams v. Dormire

How later courts describe this case

• assuming the clerk limited any conversation to administrative and logistical matters
• “There is no question . . . that defendants satisfied the first prong . . . because African-Americans are unquestionably a ‘distinct’ group for purposes of [this] analysis”
• “[T]his Court is not required to pass upon a constitutional issue unless it affirmatively appears that the issue was raised and determined in the trial court.” (quotations and citations omitted)
• Apprendi does not make the North Carolina capital sentencing scheme unconstitutional because the State does not have to notify a defendant prior to trial of the aggravating factors upon which the State intends to rely