Under pressure from Emancipate NC and the NC Black Alliance, the North Carolina Judicial Standards Commission dismissed their complaint against Justice Anita Earls, the only Black woman on the NC Supreme Court. The investigation was brought on based on anonymous complaints that accused her of undermining the court’s credibility after she spoke publicly about a lack of diversity in the North Carolina judiciary.
Following the dismissal, Justice Earls filed a notice of voluntary dismissal of her federal lawsuit against the Commission. Justice Earls said, “I continue to believe that the First Amendment protects my ability to speak about matters of racial equity in the legal system. However, I see no need to continue the litigation since the Commission has dismissed the complaint against me and at this time I no longer face being disciplined by the Court.”