State v. BrawleyÂ, 256 N.C. App. 78

In Sept. 2015 defendant was recorded removing anti-theft tags and taking two polo shirts from a Belk store in Salisbury.
A grand jury indicted defendant for larceny from a merchant (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 14-72.11(2)); a jury convicted him and he appealed.
The indictment identified the owner as “Belk’s Department Stores, an entity capable of owning property.”
Defendant argued the indictment failed to specify the legal form of the owner and thus the superior court lacked jurisdiction.
The majority vacated the conviction for a jurisdictional defect in the indictment; one judge dissented (would affirm conviction but vacate restitution).

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the indictment sufficiently identified the victim-owner for larceny of personal property	The State argued naming the merchant plus alleging it was “an entity capable of owning property” sufficiently alleged ownership	Defendant argued the indictment failed to specify the owner’s legal form (e.g., corporation, partnership) and thus was insufficient	Vacated: indictment insufficient — must identify victim with specificity by naming the legal entity type when the name does not itself import an entity capable of owning property

State v. Campbell, 368 N.C. 83, 772 S.E.2d 440 (2015) (larceny indictment must allege ownership in a natural person or a legal entity; identifying a church or similar denotes an entity capable of owning property)
State v. Thornton, 251 N.C. 658, 111 S.E.2d 901 (1960) (indictment naming a business-typed name that does not import a legal entity is insufficient)
State v. Thompson, 6 N.C. App. 64, 169 S.E.2d 241 (1969) (indictment identifying “Belk’s Department Store” without alleging entity type was fatally defective)
State v. Brown, 263 N.C. 786, 140 S.E.2d 413 (1965) (variance fatal where indictment alleged a proprietorship but evidence showed a corporation — entity type matters)
State v. Spivey, 368 N.C. 739, 782 S.E.2d 872 (2016) (relaxed owner-identification requirement for injury to real property, but not extended to personal property larceny)
State v. Ray, 274 N.C. 556, 164 S.E.2d 457 (1968) (a valid indictment by grand jury is a jurisdictional prerequisite)