State v. Sweat, 366 N.C. 79

Defendant, age 44, was arrested in 2009 after confessing to sexual misconduct with his niece Tammy, then 10, who alleged abuse beginning when she was in third grade (2007).
Charges included one count rape of a child, two counts first-degree statutory sexual offense, two counts sexual offense with a child, and five counts indecent liberties with a child; he was convicted on all charges.
Tammy testified to a pattern of abuse starting in 2007, including touching, intercourse, and exposure to pornographic material; several incidents occurred in the Brickyard Road home and later at an apartment.
Tammy reported the abuse on March 25, 2009; investigators and nurses corroborated portions of Tammy’s statements through interviews and a video-recorded interview.
The Court of Appeals held the trial court erred in two respects: (1) by granting a new trial on two fellatio-based charges due to an improper disjunctive instruction, and (2) by not requiring stronger corpus delicti corroboration for those charges.
The Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Appeals in part (corpus delicti satisfied and no error in the disjunctive instruction) and reversed in part (reversal of new-trial order on two convictions).

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Was the corpus delicti rule satisfied for four fellatio charges?	Swept reliance on confession alone; corroboration insufficient.	Confession alone should not sustain four fellatio charges without independent corroboration.	Yes; strong corroboration found, corpus delicti satisfied.
Was the disjunctive jury instruction improper for all four sexual offense charges?	Disjunctive instruction properly allowed conviction on multiple acts shown by evidence.	Only two instances of fellatio were proven, so disjunctive instruction harmed defendant.	Not error; instruction proper given four corroborated incidents.
Should the Court of Appeals have granted a new trial on all four charges or only two?	Dissent argued corpus delicti lacking for some charges; new trial warranted.	Affects only the two fellatio convictions; other convictions valid.	Court of Appeals erred in ordering new trial on two convictions; affirmed in part and reversed in part.

Parker v. North Carolina, 315 N.C. 222, 337 S.E.2d 487 (1985) (corpus delicti requires corroboration or opportunity evidence; trustworthiness of confession)
Smith v. North Carolina, 362 N.C. 583, 669 S.E.2d 299 (2008) (corpus delicti; corroboration and admissibility; opportunity and witness testimony considerations)
Lampkins v. North Carolina, 283 N.C. 520, 196 S.E.2d 697 (1973) (disjunctive jury instructions must be supported by state evidence)
State v. Gerlaugh, 134 Ariz. 164, 654 P.2d 800 (1982) (extrajudicial statements may be considered for corpus delicti corroboration)