Repository Collection 03

State v. Ronnie Long

CASE ENTRY

Last Revised • July 11, 2026

This Source Verification Page documents the National Registry of Exonerations case profile for State v. Ronnie Long, cited in Claim III of the Supplemental Motion. The case is referenced as an example of a North Carolina conviction later overturned following findings of police misconduct, mishandling of evidence, and prosecutorial failures. It is included to illustrate comparable patterns of official misconduct cited in support of post-conviction relief.


Related SMAR Citation

“State v. Ronnie Long: Cabarrus Co. Willful police misconduct, mishandling of evidence, and prosecutorial failures led to vacatur and exoneration.”


Case Name

State v. Ronnie Long


Location

Cabarrus County, North Carolina


Convictred

1976


Exonerated

2020


Verification Source

The National Registry of Exonerations


Source Location

The National Registry of Exonerations


Highlighted Pages

3 - 4, 6 - 8


Referenced in the Supplemental Motion

Page 58, Paragraph: 121


Source Status

✔ Obtained and reviewed.

✔ Relevant passages highlighted.

✔ Publicly available source

✔ Included within the Source Verification Archive


Cited to Support

May's allegation that North Carolina courts have granted post-conviction relief in cases involving police misconduct, withheld exculpatory evidence, misleading forensic evidence, and prosecutorial failures. The Ronnie Long case is cited as an example in which undisclosed exculpatory evidence, misleading forensic evidence, and official misconduct resulted in the vacatur of the conviction and Long's subsequent exoneration. May relies upon Long to illustrate that comparable patterns of official misconduct have warranted post-conviction relief and exoneration in North Carolina.


Supporting Documents

Original Article

Link to the original article.

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Highlighted Research Copy

Working research copy containing the highlighted passages cited in the Supplemental Motion.

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