State v. Baynes

ORR, Judge.

The defendant raises two issues on appeal. He argues that his constitutional right to effective assistance of counsel pursuant to the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution and Article I, §§ 19, 23 and 24 of the North Carolina Constitution has been violated by the statements made to the jury by defense counsel during closing arguments. He further argues that the Pattern Jury Instructions on Battered Child Syndrome unconstitutionally relieved the State of its burden of proving the elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.

I

The defendant first…