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‘Just Over the Line’ Tackles Sentencing Disparities in NC Counties

WUNC | By Frank Stasio,
Stacia Brown
Published October 22, 2020 at 12:03 PM EDT

What’s the difference between committing the same non-violent crime in one North Carolina county and another? For Daniel Noell, a homeless man convicted of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud and drug trafficking in Buncombe and Yancey counties, the difference was vast: he was sentenced to 30 months of probation in Buncombe County and nearly six years in prison in Yancey County. 

Host Frank Stasio talks to director Adams Wood about 'Just Over the Line,' his new documentary on a case of disproportionate sentencing in two N.C. counties.

Director Adams Woodtells Noell’s story in a new short documentary called “Just Over the Line.” The documentary will premiere on Blue Ridge Public Radio’s Facebook page on October 28. Wood joins host Frank Stasio to talk about the process of making the film and what Noell’s story can tell viewers about mass incarceration and unfair sentencing.

Copyright 2020 North Carolina Public Radio
Frank Stasio
Longtime NPR correspondent Frank Stasio was named permanent host of The State of Things in June 2006. A native of Buffalo, Frank has been in radio since the age of 19. He began his public radio career at WOI in Ames, Iowa, where he was a magazine show anchor and the station's News Director.
See stories by Frank Stasio
Stacia Brown
Stacia Brown comes to WUNC from Washington, DC, where she was a producer for WAMU’s daily news radio program, 1A. She’s the creator and host of two podcasts, The Rise of Charm City and Hope Chest. Her audio projects have been featured on Scene on Radio, a podcast of the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University; BBC 4’s Short Cuts; and American Public Radio’s Terrible, Thanks for Asking.
See stories by Stacia Brown