State ex rel. Williams v. Coppedge, 332 N.C. 654 (1992)

Nov. 19, 1992 · Supreme Court of North Carolina · No. 129A92

332 N.C. 654

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA, ex rel. BEVERLY WILLIAMS, Mother of Latoya Rashunda Williams, minor child v. WILLIAM EARL COPPEDGE

No. 129A92

(Filed 19 November 1992)

Appeal of right by plaintiff pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 7A-30(2) from the decision of a divided panel of the Court of Appeals, 105 N.C. App. 470, 414 S.E.2d 81 (1992), finding no error in the trial and affirming a judgment entered 17 September 1990 by Allen (Claude W., Jr.), J., in District Court, Franklin County. Plaintiff’s petition for discretionary review of additional issue pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 7A-31(a), N.C. R. App. P. 15(a) and 16(a), was allowed. Heard in the Supreme Court on 8 October 1992.

Lacy H. Thornburg, Attorney General, by T. Byron Smith, Assistant Attorney General, for the State, plaintiff-appellant.

No counsel contra.

PER CURIAM.

This is an action, brought pursuant to Article 9, Chapter 110, and Article 3, Chapter 49, of the North Carolina General Statutes, to establish paternity of an illegitimate child and to require defendant to support the child and to reimburse the State for past public assistance provided to the child. At trial the jury found defendant not to be the child’s father, and a judgment was entered accordingly in favor of defendant. A majority of the Court of Appeals, Judge Walker dissenting, found no error in the trial and affirmed the judgment.

Plaintiff’s petition for discretionary review of an additional issue was improvidently allowed.

For the reasons given in Judge Walker’s dissenting opinion, the decision of the Court of Appeals is reversed and the matter remanded to that court for further remand to the District Court, Franklin County, for a new trial.

PETITION FOR DISCRETIONARY REVIEW IMPROVIDENTLY ALLOWED; REVERSED AND REMANDED; NEW TRIAL.