In a criminal case, the state, through a prosecutor, initiates the suit, while in a civil case the victim brings the suit. Persons convicted of a crime may be incarcerated, fined, or both. Criminal defense attorneys represent clients who have been accused of committing a crime, and defend their rights at each stage of a misdemeanor or felony case -- from an arrest to an appeal after conviction. Criminal defense attorneys may be hired privately or provided by the government (called "public defenders").
Snow Camp, North Carolina is a historical community in southern Alamance County noted for the outdoor dramas Sword of Peace by William Hardy and Pathway to Freedom by Mark R. Sumner (both look at local Quaker involvement in past events - the Revolutionary War and the Underground Railroad). The community has a rather large Quaker population centered around the pre-revolutionary era Cane Creek Friends Meeting. The origin of the name of the community is disputed, but the most commonly accepted story as to how the name came about was that before the American Revolution a group of hunters from Pennsylvania camped there during a snowfall. The lesser accepted story is that General Cornwallis camped there during a snowfall around the time of the Battle of Guilford Courthouse. Geographically, Snow Camp is situated in the piedmont region of the state.