The Caucus: The Cost of a Supreme Court Seat

It’s been three months since the North Carolina Supreme Court election came to an end.

At the time, I asked both state parties how much of a financial hit they took in the months of post-election litigation. New campaign finance reports are finally giving us more insight.

— Bryan Anderson

🧑‍⚖️ Roll Call

What did the 2024 Supreme Court seat legal fight cost?
Some 2026 Supreme Court donations are returned
The latest on the Nathaniel Jones murder case
What EPA cuts mean for one N.C. city

The Cost of a Supreme Court Seat

Republican Court of Appeals Judge Jefferson Griffin and Democratic Supreme Court Justice Allison Riggs adopted two very different funding models for their months in court.

While both set up accounts for legal expenses, Griffin relied nearly entirely on funds from the North Carolina Republican Party. Riggs took in a greater share of individual donations to sustain her battle to hang onto her seat—and her campaign and legal fund spent more than three times as much as Griffin’s did.

Building His Case

According to campaign finance reports, Griffin’s legal fund and political campaign spent more than $362,000 on legal bills following the November 5 election. Nearly 95 percent of that money came from the state party’s building fund. (Those funds ostensibly pay for party headquarters, but the legislature has allowed them to be used for legal bills too.) The remaining 5 percent came from individual donations.

Republican Court of Appeals Judge Tom Murry gave $5,000 to Griffin’s legal defense fund last year, shortly before Murry took office. (Sitting judges aren’t supposed to donate to political campaigns.) Former House Speaker Paul Stam gave Griffin’s fund $200 in February.

Duke Energy contributed $100,000 to the North Carolina Republican Party Building Fund in February. While the NCGOP’s building fund was the main financing vehicle for Griffin’s litigation, party spokesman Matt Mercer said Duke Energy’s contribution wasn’t Griffin-related. The company also said it wasn’t intended to support Griffin.

“We contribute to organizations across the political spectrum who are supportive of our focus on providing reliable energy at the lowest cost possible for our customers,” a company spokesperson said in a statement. “This contribution was not connected to the North Carolina Supreme Court election, nor any specific candidate.”

Big Spender

Meanwhile, between her legal defense fund and campaign, Riggs’ legal expenses totaled about $1.2 million. She took in $825,000 from the state Democratic Party’s building fund and main account and refunded the party $100,000. The $725,000 net state party contribution represents about 61 percent of the amount Riggs spent on legal bills.

Nearly all the rest came from individuals. After the November election, two people gave the maximum $6,400 donation to Riggs’ campaign: an Illinois-based donor named William Connell and Scott Wallace, a philanthropist and former Pennsylvania congressional candidate.

The largest donations to her legal fund, which doesn’t have the same donation cap, came from outside the state. Liz Simons, the daughter of billionaire retired hedge fund manager James Simons, gave $250,000 to Riggs’ legal fund. Democratic donor Gloria Page contributed $64,600, businessman Glen Tullman gave $30,000, and Clifford Burnstein, founder of Q Prime, donated $25,000.

The biggest North Carolina-based donor to Riggs’ legal defense fund was UNC physician Keith Smith, who gave $24,000. He was followed by James Goodmon, Sr., chairman of the Capitol Broadcasting Company (the parent company of WRAL), who gave Riggs $20,000.

Looking Ahead

Following the monthslong courtroom battles, Riggs entered July with more than $1 million in available cash (more than $561,000 in her campaign account and $480,000 in her legal fund). Riggs’ fundraising haul sets her on a strong fiscal path should she seek reelection in 2032.

Meanwhile, Griffin had about $6,670 in available cash at the end of June. His term on the Court of Appeals expires in 2028.

Thanks for reading The Caucus, a politics newsletter anchored by Bryan Anderson. Reach us with tips or ideas at politics@theassemblync.com.

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Your Money Back

Rep. Sarah Stevens of Surry County this week returned two donations given to her 2026 campaign for state Supreme Court: $6,800 from former state House Speaker Harold Brubaker and $1,500 from Andy Munn. Both are lobbyists.

Bob Hall, former executive director of Democracy North Carolina, filed a complaint with the State Board of Elections last week arguing that the donations violated a state law barring lobbyists from donating to sitting lawmakers. (NC Newsline first reported on the Brubaker donation and Hall’s complaint.) Lobbyists have previously been able to give to sitting lawmakers who sought federal office.

But because Stevens is running for state office, Hall argued the contributions ought to be returned. Stevens’ team said the donations were to her campaign, not to her as a lawmaker, but spokesman Paul Shumaker said the $8,300 has nonetheless been returned.

“I advised Stevens not to challenge the inequity of the application of the law to her and simply return the funds,” Shumaker said in a statement. “There is no prohibition of lobbyists’ contributions to state judicial candidates, unless they are sitting members of the GA as interpreted by the SBOE.”

— Bryan Anderson

Exoneration on Hold

Brothers Nathaniel Cauthen and Rayshawn Banner were prepared to walk out of prison on Tuesday. A few days earlier, Superior Court Judge Robert Broadie exonerated them and two other men, Christopher Bryant and Jermal Tolliver, in the murder of NBA star Chris Paul’s grandfather, Nathaniel Jones.

But they didn’t leave prison. The North Carolina Court of Appeals issued an emergency stay on Broadie’s order Tuesday, meaning that the brothers will continue serving their life sentences for now.

The order on Friday was a rare and extraordinary victory for the men. They had long claimed that they were innocent and that Winston-Salem police had coerced them into making false confessions. Winston-Salem police had arrested five teenagers, including the late Dorrell Brayboy, after Jones was killed in 2002. Banner was 14 and the rest were 15. No definitive physical evidence linked them to the crime scene.

Jessicah Black, a 16-year-old from Davidson County who had befriended them, became the state’s key witness, testifying in two separate trials that, among other things, she sat on a bench in a park near Jones’ home and heard the boys beat Jones. Six years ago, she recanted, saying that Winston-Salem police detectives coerced her into making false statements.

In his order, Broadie found Black’s recantation credible and wrote that if it had not been for her false testimony, it is possible the five would have been acquitted. Broadie also concluded that the boys had poor legal representation and that there was newly discovered evidence that bolstered their claims of innocence.

Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O’Neill is working with the North Carolina Attorney General’s Office, led by Jeff Jackson, in challenging Broadie’s order. Jackson’s office has asked the Court of Appeals to issue a permanent stay until prosecutors can file a proper appeal. The state appellate court has not ruled on that request.

— Michael Hewlett

A Creek That Smells Like Death

Two years ago, in August 2023, Durham fenced off a creek after chemical distribution company Brenntag Mid-South detected high levels of acetone, toluene, and ethanol in water at its property edge a half-mile upstream.

Early this year, Durham City Manager Bo Ferguson contacted the Environmental Protection Agency’s regional office in Atlanta for help. He wrote on February 12 that “given the long history of industrial uses and contamination of the premises, we believe that the US EPA is best equipped to collaborate with the City and Brenntag Mid-South in improving conditions.”

Initially, the EPA was alarmed by Ferguson’s information. But two days after he sent his letter, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced mass layoffs at the agency. Within a month, Zeldin had eliminated the Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights, which is supposed to protect communities like Durham’s McDougald Terrace. An EPA spokesperson told Inside Climate News the agency is still coordinating with the city.

— Lisa Sorg