Duke Law caught in affirmative action workaround | Illegal alien accused of cop-killing pleads to jail escape | Suicide by cop? | Child shot in road rage
No. 131 — Jun. 29-Jul. 5, 2025
Duke Law Journal caught circumventing affirmative action ban with "personal statements"
Duke Law Journal Sent a Secret Memo to Minority Applicants Telling Them They’d Get Extra Points for Writing About Their Race - Washington Free Beacon
In 2023, when ruling against affirmative action in the landmark Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina, Chief Justice John Roberts made it clear that universities could not legally use obvious proxies to continue their discrimination against white and Asian applicants: "despite the dissent’s assertion to the contrary, universities may not simply establish through application essays or other means the regime we hold unlawful today."
However, that appears to be exactly what the Duke Law Journal (published by Duke University School of Law) practices in its application process, according to documents, sources, and communications obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.
According to a scoring rubric in an application packet distributed only to "affinity groups" for minority students, up to half of the points for an applicant's "personal statement" may be awarded based on their "diverse voice" and/or proof of having "meaningfully advanced the interests of communities with diverse perspectives and experiences."
In case the instruction to "discuss traditional diversity (race, gender, ethnicity etc...)" in the personal statement was not clear enough, the packet also included four examples of personal statements in which the applicants described themselves as "a Latino/a student," "an Asian-American woman and a daughter of immigrants," "a Middle Eastern Jewish woman," and "a a Latina woman" respectively.
Illegal alien charged in Wake Deputy's murder pleads guilty to prison escape
Brother charged in murder of Wake Co. deputy pleads guilty to escape from prison - ABC11
Man charged in Wake County deputy’s murder pleads guilty to federal charge - N&O
Man accused in Wake deputy murder pleads guilty to federal charge - WRAL
One of the four illegal alien siblings charged in relation to the 2022 murder of Wake Deputy Ned Byrd has agreed to plead guilty to "conspiracy to assist or instigate escape" (Title 18, U.S.C.,, Section 371) over his 2023 escape from a Virginia jail (MDNC 1:23-cr-00188), which carries a maximum prison sentence of five years.
Although Alder Alfonso Marin-Sotelo and his older brother Arturo Marin-Sotelo were (and are) facing murder charges in North Carolina courts for allegedly ambushing and fatally shooting Byrd in the back of the head, at the time of the escape Alder Alfonso was being held federally at Piedmont Regional Jail in Farmville, VA awaiting sentencing for an unrelated charge of possession of firearm by an illegal alien stemming from a 2021 traffic stop in Chapel Hill (MDNC 1:22-cr-00261).
Alder Alfonso was only recaptured after escaping to his home country of Mexico, and was successfully fighting extradition until Trump took office and secured the transfer of 29 defendants in Mexican custody.
A third sibling, Adriana Marin-Sotelo, plead guilty to helping Alder Alfonso's prison escape, and gave cooperating testimony in exchange for not being deported and a sentence of only 10 months in prison.
The fourth sibling, Rolando Marin-Sotelo, has been charged with accessory to the murder for allegedly disposing of the vehicle his brothers were driving the night of the murder.
For more details on the incident, as well as the siblings and their charges (including their past encounters with law enforcement), see previous coverage:
Trump admin. secures extradition of Mexican illegal charged w/ Wake deputy's murder
An illegal alien who fled to his home country of Mexico after escaping jail has been taken into US custody after a 21-month extradition battle to face a first degree murder charge in the 2022 shooting of Wake County Sheriff's Deputy Ned Byrd.
Suicide by cop?
Wake County deputies shoot armed man who opened fire near Raleigh, sheriff's office - ABC11
Armed man shot after firing at deputies in Wake County; 1 deputy also hurt - CBS17
Three Wake County deputies are on administrative leave (per protocol) after non-fatally shooting an armed man who was threatening to harm himself. According to the Wake County Sheriff's Office, the deputies were responding to a call in southern Wake County on Tuesday regarding the threats of self-harm when Brian Jacob Monroe, 32, opened fire on them, injuring one of the deputies.
Monroe was transported to the hospital in critical condition, while the injured deputy has already been released.
The incident is currently being investigated North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, which is customary for officer-involved shootings.
NC medical examiner’s office can’t determine who shot teen at Durham police HQ - N&O
New medical reports detail man’s shooting death at Durham police headquarters - CBS17
The autopsy and medical examiners report released this week relating to the in-custody shooting death at the Durham Police headquarters earlier this year was inconclusive as to who fired the fatal gunshot wounds to the neck and head of the decedent.
Joshua Farmer, 19, had been brought in by police on May 14 for questioning regarding the murder of a juvenile five days previously. According to the report, Farmer took the opportunity when his handcuffs were being switched out to lunge for one of the officers' handguns.
Three officers were wrestling Farmer for control of the handgun when the two shots rang out, leading to a lack of clarity as to who actually had control of the firearm.
Farmer was reportedly heard to have quietly said "just shoot me" by multiple witnesses during the struggle, suggesting that suicide may have been the motivation for the confrontation and/or the shooting.
No charges filed against Johnston Co. deputies, who shot man; deemed 'reasonable and warranted' - ABC11
Johnston County DA rules no charges for deputies who shot man on mental health call - N&O
In a third related story this week, two Johnston County deputies have been cleared in a non-fatal shooting in February in responding to a call regarding an intoxicated man who was threatening to harm himself and get in a shootout with deputies.
When the deputies arrived they found Anthony Wayne Collins, who had a handgun in his pocket and refused to comply with the officers' orders to raise his hands and get on the ground. Instead, Collins ran away while shouting "I'm going to kill you" and reaching for his firearm, leading the two deputies to open fire and shoot him multiple times.
5-year-old child shot in road rage incident on US 1/US 64 in Cary
Arrest made after child shot in road-rage incident on US 1 in Cary - ABC11
Arrest made in Cary road rage incident that left 5-year-old shot - CBS17
Suspect to face new charge in apparent road-rage shooting of 5-year-old in Cary - N&O
A Raleigh man is being held without bond after Cary Police charged him with shooting a 5-year-old girl in a road rage incident on N US 1/E US 64 near the Cary Parkway exit on Monday night.
Charles Edward Stevenson Jr., 20, has been charged with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, discharging a weapon into occupied property, and assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury. (Case No. 25CR349526-910, Case No. 25CR349975-910)
According to the child's father, Stevenson was driving erratically and hit his F-150 pickup truck with an object he was attempting to throw at another driver; when the father called police and reencountered Stevenson ten minutes later, he tried to get Stevenson's attention, which is when Stevenson fired into his vehicle and hit his daughter in the leg.
The child has undergone surgery, and is expected to recover in 4-6 months.
