NC · jury_instructions
N.C.P.I.—Crim. 308.41
DETENTION OF OFFENDERS BY PRIVATE PERSONS.
If the defendant lawfully acted to detain the victim,1 the
defendant’s actions are excused and the defendant is not guilty. The
State has the burden of proving from the evidence beyond a reasonable
doubt that the defendant did not lawfully act to detain the victim.
The defendant lawfully acted to detain the victim if the defendant
had probable cause to believe that the victim had committed in the
defendant's presence [a felony] [a breach of the peace] [a crime involving
physical injury to another person] [a crime involving [theft] (or)
[destruction] of property]. The defendant's action to detain the victim
must have been reasonable considering the offenses involved and the
circumstances of the detention.2
(The detention may not have lasted longer than the time required
to [determine that no offense had been committed] [surrender the victim
to a law-enforcement officer. And the defendant must have immediately
notified a law-enforcement officer]).3
NOTE WELL: Add to the final mandate:
Although you are satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that the
defendant committed (name offense) you may return a verdict of guilty
only if the State has satisfied you beyond a reasonable doubt that the
defendant did not lawfully act to detain the victim, that is, that the
defendant did not have probable cause to believe that the victim had
committed in the defendant's presence [a felony] [a breach of the peace]
[a crime involving physical injury to another person] [a crime involving
[theft] [destruction] of property] or that the defendant acted
unreasonably considering the offense involved and the circumstances of
the detention, (or that the detention lasted longer than the time required
to [determine that no offense had been committed] [surrender the victim
to a law-enforcement officer, or that the defendant failed to immediately
notify a law-enforcement officer]). If you do not so find or have a
reasonable doubt, then the defendant would be excused and it would be
your duty to return a verdict of not guilty.
History
N.C.P.I.—Crim. 308.41 (June 2009). N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-404. Prepared by the North Carolina Conference of Superior Court Judges' Committee on Pattern Jury Instructions, assisted by the UNC School of Government; published by the School of Government.
Provenance
- Source
- sog.unc.edu
- Retrieved
- 2026-09-25
- Edition
- 2026-09-24
- Content hash
8bd1fae79eeb1312e7d1b38e631745e32355a17698c0d0ccd5ef1bad9b9d4f50
The link goes to the issuing authority’s own document — the one we read to produce this record. Where a source publishes whole titles rather than sections, your browser may need a moment to jump to the provision.
Unofficial copy of government-published law, reproduced from official sources with full provenance. Not an official publication; verify against official sources before relying on it in a filing. Records in the 'guidance' corpus, and only that corpus, are sub-regulatory (interpretive guidelines, survey procedures) and are not binding law. Validity bounds follow each jurisdiction's declared temporalBasis.