Blog
Dawn Blagrove to Receive Criminal Justice and Law Award at the 2026 Image Awards
We are thrilled to share that Dawn Blagrove, Executive Director of Emancipate NC, has been named the recipient of the Criminal Justice and Law Award at the upcoming 2026 Image Awards, hosted by the Flood Group. This honor recognizes Dawn’s...
How State Prosecutors Handle Marijuana Cases in NC
By Dillon Sharpe, Emancipate NC Attorney Marijuana remains illegal in North Carolina—but hemp is 100% legal. Across the state, countless businesses legally sell hemp products, including flower, vape cartridges, and edibles. Yet despite hemp’s clear legal status, most...
Concerns over Raleigh’s Approval of the GPS Tracking System, StarChase
Emancipate NC Executive Director and attorney Dawn Blagrove is raising concerns about Raleigh’s approval of the GPS tracking system, StarChase. She warns that the technology grants law enforcement sweeping tracking capabilities that could affect everyday residents....
Federal Judge Sides with Emancipate NC in Lawsuit Against UNC Chapel Hill
By Jaelyn Miller, Emancipate NC Attorney and Community Organizer In March 2025, Emancipate NC, alongside the ACLU of North Carolina and Muslim Advocates, filed a lawsuit against UNC Chapel Hill challenging the university’s treatment of protesters involved in the...
Emancipate NC Files Lawsuit with ACLU of NC to Challenge Ban on Gender-Affirming Care for Incarcerated People
By Jaelyn Miller, Emancipate NC Attorney and Community Organizer Elizabeth Simpson, Strategic Director & Attorney at Emancipate NC and the ACLU of NC filed a lawsuit to challenge a provision of House Bill 805. The bill, which targets trans North...
Raleigh’s New Crisis Call Diversion Line is Up and Running!
By Jaelyn Miller, Emancipate NC Attorney and Community Organizer After years of advocacy by Emancipate NC, the City of Raleigh has finally begun implementing its alternative response program, Raleigh CARES. In 2023, Emancipate NC helped convene a coalition of...
In Inquest Article, Phillip Vance Smith II asks: What is the Role of the Prison Journalist?
In the spring of 2023, two journalists drove through North Carolina to meet me at Nash Correctional Facility. Phoebe Judge and Lauren Spohrer—the hosts of the true crime podcast Criminal—had spent about six months pestering the Department of Adult Correction (DAC) for...
NCCU School of Law Hosts Annual Willie Gary Competition
By Dillon Sharpe, Emancipate NC Attorney On October 18, 2025, the North Carolina Central University School of Law Trial Advocacy Board (TAB) hosted its annual Willie Gary 2L/3L Opening and Closing Statement Competition. The event serves as a critical gateway for...
Emancipate NC Speaks out Against Police Brutality in Greensboro
By Dillon Sharpe, Emancipate NC Attorney On November 10, 2025, Emancipate NC attorneys Dawn Blagrove and Dillon Sharpe traveled to Greensboro to stand in solidarity with Alisia Ray, Quinten Thomas, and Nathaniel Williams—three individuals who were violently arrested...
Toia Potts, Emancipate NC Organizer, Pens Powerful Article in Inquest
I celebrated my son Kimoni’s first birthday under surveillance. I brought him cake, gifts, and party favors—I wanted to make it as special as possible considering the fact that he was in foster care with strangers and I was being watched like a hawk by a social worker...
Join Us at the Emancipated CLE 2026, February 27, 2026
Emancipate NC will host The Emancipated CLE 2026 on February 27, 2026, at the People’s Solidarity Hub in Durham. This full-day program offers 5 CLE credits, including 1 hour of ethics and 1 hour of professional well-being, and centers on the real-world challenges of...
Follow Black Leadership
By Dawn Blagrove, Emancipate NC Executive Director When America collectively took to the streets in 2020 after the murder of George Floyd, you stood shoulder to shoulder with Black leaders and proclaimed that NOW you were finally awake and ready to slay the beast of...
In-Person Visitation at the Durham County Jail Resumes!
Access to jail policies should be routine. When Emancipate NC requested records related to jail operations, other counties across the state responded promptly and in full. Durham County, however, took a very different approach. Instead of making the records available...
Justice Bus Tour Launch Highlights the Real Impact of the “Big Ugly Bill”
The NAACP Sanford (Lee County) Branch officially launched its Justice Bus Tour with a powerful and timely presentation by Executive Director Dawn Blagrove, whose remarks left a lasting impression on community members of all ages. As a featured speaker for the...
From Incarceration to Ownership: Kerwin Pittman Reclaims a Prison for Reentry and Renewal
Kerwin Pittman is making history. With the recent purchase of the former Wayne Correctional Center in Goldsboro, Pittman says he has become the first formerly incarcerated person in the United States to purchase a prison—and he plans to transform it into a space for...