North Carolina Jim Crow Laws

Subsection (b) of Section 105-37 of the General Statutes is hereby rewritten to read as follows: (b) For any moving picture show operated within the city limits or within one mile of the corporate limits of any city having a population of 25,000 or over, and known as neighborhood or suburban theaters, or for any theater operated exclusively for colored people in a city having a population of 2500 or over, the tax levied shall be one-third of the above tax, based upon the population of such city.

Registration. Each registrar shall be furnished by said county board of elections with registration books, and it shall be his duty, after being qualified, to perform the functions of his office fairly, impartially, and according to law; to revise the existing registration books of the precinct for which he is appointed in such manner that said books shall show an accurate list of electors previously registered in such precinct and still residing therein, and entitled to vote without requiring such electors to be registered anew; and such registrars shall also, during the period prescribed for such registration, between the hours of 9:00 oclock A. M. and sunset (Sunday excepted) keep open the books for the registration of any electors residing in such city and entitled to registration, whose names do not appear in the revised list, and he shall register in said books all names of persons not so registered who may apply for registration and who are entitled to vote in said city. Each registrar shall be required to be at the polling place for his precinct on Saturdays from 9:00 A. M. until sunset during the period of registration. He shall keep the names of white voters separate and apart from those of the colored voters, and any person offering to register may be required to take and subscribe on oath that he has resided in the State of North Carolina one year, and in the precinct in which he offers to register four months previous to the day of election, and that he is twenty-one years of age, and that he is a qualified elector of said city. If any person wilfully swear falsely in taking such oath, he shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction shall be sentenced to pay a fine of one hundred dollars ($100.00) and imprisoned sixty days in the county jail. But the county board of elections, on fifteen days notice by publication in some newspaper of said city before the opening of the books, may order an entirely new registration of voters whenever they may deem it proper. The registration books shall be closed at sundown on the second Saturday before the primary election, and after the same are closed no person shall be allowed to register, except those coming of age after the books close and before or on election day, who are otherwise qualified electors of the city.

Corporate Limits. The corporate limits of the City of Raleigh shall be as defined and set forth in Chapter 59 of the Private Laws of North Carolina, 1913, Chapter 47, Private Laws of North Carolina, Extra Session of 1920, Chapter 121 of the Private Laws of North Carolina 1929, and Chapter 463 of the Public-Local Laws of North Carolina 1941, all of which statutes are hereby incorporated into this Act to the extent applicable to the definition and determination of the corporate boundaries of the City of Raleigh, the said corporate limits, as extended and fixed by Chapter 463 of Public-Local Laws of North Carolina 1941 and by an election held pursuant thereto, and as hereby prescribed, being specifically described as follows: Beginning at the present southeast corner of the city limits, running thence northwardly along the present city limits line to its intersection with the southern boundary line of East Davie Street; thence running eastwardly along the southern boundary line of East Davie Street to its intersection with the eastern boundary line of Battery Drive; thence in a northwestwardly direction, along the eastern boundary line of Battery Drive to its intersection with the southern boundary line of East Martin Street (same being the corner in the present city limit boundaries) ; running thence along the present city limits line of Star and Waldrop Streets to its intersection with Sater Street; thence westwardly along the northern boundary of Sater Street to its intersection with the eastern boundary line of Fisher Street; thence northwardly along the eastern boundary of Fisher Street a distance of 400 feet; thence westwardly along a direct line parallel to Sater Street and Tarboro Road and 400 feet distance therefrom to its intersection with the present city limit line, situated in the campus of St. Augustine College; thence northwardly and westwardly along the present city limit line to its intersection with the center line of Cemetery Branch; thence | northwardly along the center line of Cemetery Branch to its intersection with the center line of the New Louisburg Road, State Highway Number 59; thence in a northwestwardly direction along a direct line to a point 300 feet East of the Wake Forest Road, United States Highway Number 1, in line with western extension of the center line of a road which intersects the Wake Forest Road United States Highway Number 1, at a point approximately 1100 feet South of Crabtree Creek; thence northwestwardly along the extension of the center line of the above named road 300 feet to its intersection with the center line of the Wake Forest Road, United States Highway Number 1; thence southwestwardly in a direct line to the northeast intersection of Whitaker Mill Road and the road formerly known as Whitaker Home Drive, the same being the southwest corner of the Wake County Home property; thence northwestwardly along the eastern boundary line of the road formerly known as Whitaker Home Drive to its intersection with the eastern boundary line of Pine Drive; thence northwestwardly along the eastern boundary line of Pine Drive to its intersection with eastern boundary line of Oxford Road; thence northeastwardly along the eastern boundary line of Oxford Road to its intersection with the northern boundary line of Crabtree Street; thence along the northern boundary line of Crabtree Street to its northern intersection with Whitaker Drive; thence westwardly in a direct line to a point in the northern boundary line of Lake Drive, said point being a point of intersection with the extension of the western boundary line of West Lake Drive; thence along the northern boundary line of Lake Drive to its intersection with the eastern boundary line of Lassiter Mill Road; thence westwardly in a direct line to the point of intersection of Beaver Dam Branch and the center of the dam at Country Club Lake; thence southwestwardly along the center line of Beaver Dam Branch to a point with its intersection of the West prong of Beaver Dam Branch; thence West and southwestwardly along the center line of the West prong of Beaver Dam Branch to its intersection with the West property line of Faircloth Street; thence northwardly along the western boundary line of Faircloth Street, to its intersection with an unnamed road adjacent to and running along the northern boundary line of the Meredith College property; thence westwardly along the southern boundary line of said road to a point, said point being the intersection of the southern boundary line of said road and a line being the northern extension of the center line of that tangent section of Meredith College spur track; thence southwardly and southeastwardly along the said extension line and the center line of the Meredith College spur track, to its intersection with the northern right of way line of the Seaboard Railroad; thence southeastwardly along the right of way line of the Seaboard Railroad to its intersection with the present city limit line; thence southwardly along the present city limit line to its intersection with the southern right of way line of the Western Boulevard; thence in a direct line to the present southwest corner of the city limits, situated on the State Hospital property; thence eastwardly along the present southern city limit line to its intersection with the eastern boundary line of the Fayetteville Road; thence southwardly along the eastern property line of Fayetteville Road, to its intersection with the southern boundary line of Hoke Street; thence eastwardly along the southern boundary line of Hoke Street to its intersection with the eastern boundary line of Holleman Road (United States Highway Number 70); thence northwardly along the eastern boundary line of Holleman Road, United States Highway Number 70, to its intersection with the present city limits to Bragg Street; thence eastwardly along the present city limit line to the southeast corner of the present city limits, the same being the point of beginning; provided, that all territory which may be acquired by the City of Raleigh by purchase or donation or otherwise for park purposes, and the cemetery for the burial of deceased white persons known as Oakwood Cemetery, and the cemetery for the burial of deceased colored persons (located southeast of the City of Raleigh), known as Mount Hope Cemetery, and that tract of land conveyed to the city by D. M. Carter and wife by deed registered in Book 162 at page 162 in the office of the Register of Deeds of Wake County, and the tract of land conveyed to the city by Laura Carter by deed registered in Book 161 at page 406 in said Register of Deeds office of Wake County, which tracts of land are owned by the city for the purposes of maintaining a garbage farm and as a site for the smallpox hospital, shall also be included in the corporate limits of the City of Raleigh; and all ordinances now in force or hereafter enacted by the city council of said city shali be applicable to the territory included in such parks and in said cemeteries and said tracts of land as fully as if the said territory was embraced within the limits of the City of Raleigh.

Unlawful operation. -1 Any person, whether carrier, or any officer, employee, agent or representative thereof, knowingly and willfully violating any provision of this Act or any rule, regulation, requirement, or order thereunder, or any term of condition of any certificate or permit, for which a penalty is not otherwise herein provided, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof be fined not more than one hundred dollars ($100.00) for the first offense and not more than five hundred dollars ($500.00) for any subsequent offense. -2 If any motor carrier, or any other person or corporation, shall operate a motor vehicle for the transportation of passengers for compensation in violation of any provision of this Act, except as to the reasonableness of rates or charges and the discriminatory character thereof, or shall operate in violation of any rule, regulation, requirement or order of the commission, or of any term or condition of any certificate or permit, the commission or any holder of a certificate or permit duly issued by the commission may apply to the resident Superior Court Judge of any judicial district where such motor carrier or other person or corporation so operates, or to any Superior Court Judge holding court in such judicial district, for the enforcement of any provision of this Act, or of any rule, regulation, requirement, order, term or condition of the commission. Such court shall have jurisdiction to enforce obedience to this Act or to any rule, order, or decision of the commission by a writ of injunction or other process, mandatory or otherwise, restraining such carrier, person or corporation, or its offices, agents, employees and representatives from further violation of this Act or of any rule, order, regulation, or decision of the commission. -3 Any person, whether carrier, passenger, shipper, consignee, or any officer, employee, agent, or representative thereof, who shall knowingly offer, grant, or give or solicit, accept, or receive any rebate, concession, or discrimination in violation of any provision of this Act, or who by means of any FALSE statement or representation, or by the use of any FALSE or fictitious bill, bill of lading, receipt, voucher, roll, account, claim, certificate, affidavit, deposition, lease, or bill of sale, or by any other means or device, shall knowingly and willfully by any such means or otherwise fraudulently seek to evade or defeat regulations as in this Act provided for motor carriers, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof be fined not more than five hundred dollars ($500.00) for the first offense and not more than two thousand dollars ($2,000.00) for any subsequent offense. -4 It shall be unlawful for any special agent, accountant, auditor, inspector, or examiner to knowingly and willfully divulge any fact or information which may come to his knowledge during the course of any examination or inspection made under authority of Section 25 of this Act, except as he may be directed by the commission or by a court or judge thereof. Nothing in this Act shall be construed to prevent the giving of such information in response to any legal process issued under the authority of any court, or to any officer or agent of the State or of the government of the United States, in the exercise of his power, or to any officer or other duly authorized person seeking such information for the prosecution of persons charged with or suspected of crimes or to another carrier, or its duly authorized agent, for the purpose of adjusting mutual traffic accounts in the ordinary course of business of such carriers. -5 Any motor carrier, or other person, or any officer, agent, employee, or representative thereof, who shall willfully fail or refuse to make a report to the commission as required by this Act, or other applicable law, or to make specific and full, true, and correct answer to any question within thirty days from the time it is lawfully required by the commission so to do, or to keep accounts, records, and memoranda in the form and manner prescribed by the commission, or shall knowingly and willfully falsify, destroy, mutilate, or alter any such report, account, record, or memorandum, or shall knowingly and willfully neglect or fail to make true, and correct entries in such accounts, records, or memoranda of all facts and transactions appertaining to the business of the carrier, or person required under this Act to keep the same, or shall knowingly and willfully keep any accounts, records, or memoranda contrary to the rules, regulations, or orders of the commission with respect thereto, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof be subject for each offense to a fine of not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000.00). As used in this Subsection the words kept and keep shall be construed to mean made, prepared, or compiled, as well as retained. It shall be the duty of the commission to prescribe and enforce such general rules and regulations as it may deem necessary to compel all motor carriers to keep accurate records of all revenue received by them to the end that any tax levied and assessed by the State of North Carolina upon revenues may be collected. Any agent or employee of a motor carrier who shall willfully and knowingly make a FALSE report or record of fares, charges, or other revenue received by a carrier or collected in its behalf shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be fined or imprisoned, or both, in the discretion of the court.

Separation of races. The commission shall require: every common carrier by motor vehicle to provide separate but substantially equal accommodations for the white and colored races at passenger stations or waiting rooms where the carrier receives passengers of both races, and on all common carriers by motor vehicles operating on a route or routes over which such carrier transports passengers of both races. Provided that any requirement as to separate accommodation for the races shall not apply to specially chartered motor vehicles or to negro servants and attendants and their employers, or to officers or guards transporting prisoners.

That following each general election held in Guilford County, except the general election for which a new registration is called as mentioned in Section 1 of this Act, the chairman of the county board of elections shall cause the name of all new electors registered in each precinct to be copied, together with the race, age, and residence of such electors and shall certify such information to the City Clerk of the City of Greensboro. The City Clerk of the City of Greensboro shall cause the names of said electors to be copied in the proper registration books of the city, and all persons thus registered, who are otherwise qualified, shall thereafter be eligible to vote in the city primaries and elections. That all costs incident to the furnishing of names and information by the chairman of the county board of elections shall be borne by the City of Greensboro.

That prior to the next municipal primary election to be held in the City of Greensboro after a new registration is called by the Guilford County Board of Elections, the Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Elections shall make available to the City Clerk of the City of Greensboro the general election registration book or books of each precinct within the corporate limits of the City of Greensboro, and the city clerk shall have copied from the general election registration book or books for each precinct within the corporate limits of the City of Greensboro into a new registration book or books the names of all registered electors shown on said general election registration book or books and shall record in said new registration books opposite each name information available with reference to race, age, and residence of such elector. The City Clerk of the City of Greensboro shall supervise the transferring of the names from the general election registration books into new registration books of the city and shall, upon the completion of such transfer, return each of said general election registration books to the Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Elections. Said new registration books shall be the official registration books of the city. On the first primary day and on the first election day after a new registration is called by the Guilford County Board of Elections, the Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Elections shall turn over to the City Clerk of the City of Greensboro the general election registration book or books of each precinct within the corporate limits of the City of Greensboro, and in the event that any person should appear at a polling place on the city primary or election day above mentioned and contend that such person was registered in such precinct for the primary or general election during the new county-wide registration and the name of such person does not appear on the registration book of the city, such person may, if in fact so registered on the general registration book of the county, obtain from the city clerk a certificate to the effect that such person was properly registered on the general registration book of the county, and it shall be the duty of the registrar of the precinct, in which such person is registered, to place the name of such person on the city registration book. On the day following said city election, the city clerk shall return each of said general election registration books to the Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Elections. All persons registered in the respective precincts within the corporate limits of the City of Greensboro whose names appear in the general election registration books, as shown immediately after the new registration hereinabove mentioned and who are otherwise qualified, shall be eligible to vote in the next city primary and city election to be held in the City of Greensboro after said new registration, and thereafter every person thus registered, whose name appears in the registration books of the city and who is otherwise qualified, shall thereafter be entitled to vote in the city primaries and elections; provided that the city registration books shall be open for new registrations for city primaries or elections, as provided by law.

That it shall be unlawful for any person, firm or 2orporation, on the Sabbath Day, generally known as the Lords Day, to operate or be in any manner interested in or particigate in the operation of any race track or other place at which che racing of motor vehicles, including racing cars, stock cars, notorcycles or other types of motor vehicles, is carried on in (redell County. Any person violating the provisions of this Act shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and fined or imprisoned, or 0th, in the discretion of the court.

The County Board of Education of Brunswick County, subject to the approval of the tax levying authorities of said county and of the State Board of Education, in order to operate schools of a higher standard than that provided by State support in Southport White School District of Brunswick County, but in no event to provide for a term of more than 180 days, may supplement the funds from State or county allotments available to said district: Provided, that before making any levy for supplementing said allotments an election shall be held in said district to determine whether there shall be levied a tax to provide said supplemental funds and to determine the maximum rate which may be levied therefor. Before said election can be held in such district, a petition of the district committee setting out the purposes for which said election is to be held and the maximum rate of tax which may be levied shall be approved by the county board of education, the tax levying authorities of said county, and the State Board of Education. When such approval is had, then upon the request of the county board of education, the tax levying authorities of Brunswick County shall provide for an election under the laws governing such election as are set forth for county and city administrative unity supplementary elections in General Statutes 115-361.

Chapter 48 of the General Statutes of North Carolina is hereby rewritten, so as to conform, as herein set out, to the provisions of H. B. 65 as approved, passed, and ratified on April 4, 1947 by the General Assembly of North Carolina, session of 1947, so that said Chapter 48 of the General Statutes of North Carolina as hereby rewritten shall read as follows: 48-1. Legislative intent: construction of chapter. The General Assembly hereby declares as a matter of legislative policy with respect to adoption that -1 The primary purpose of this Chapter is to protect children from unnecessary separation from parents who might give them good homes and loving care, to protect them from adoption by persons unfit to have the responsibility of their care and rearing, and to protect them from interference, long after they have become properly adjusted in their adoptive homes, by natural parents who may have some legal claim because of a defect in the adoption procedure. -2 The secondary purposes of this Chapter is to protect the natural parents from hurried decisions, made under strain and anxiety, to give up a child, and to protect foster parents from assuming responsibility for a child about whose heredity or mental or physical condition they know nothing, and to prevent later disturbance of their relationship to the child by natural parents whose legal rights have not been fully protected. -3 When the interests of a child and those of an adult are in conflict, such conflict should be resolved in favor of the child; and to that end this Chapter should be liberally construed. 48-2. Definitions. In this Chapter, unless the context or subject matter otherwise requires -1 Adult person means any person who has attained the age of twenty-one years. -2 Licensed child-placing agency means any agency operating under a license to place children for adoption issued by the State Board of Public Welfare, or in the event that such agency is in another state or territory or in the District of Columbia, operating under a license to place children for adoption issued by a governmental authority of such state, territory, or the District of Columbia, empowered by law to issue such licenses. -3 For the purpose of this Chapter, an abandoned child shall be any child under the age of eighteen years who has been willfully abandoned at least six consecutive months immediately preceding institution of an action or proceeding to declare the child to be an abandoned child. -4 Readoption means an adoption by any person of a child who has been previously legally adopted. 48-3. Who may be adopted. Any minor child, irrespective of place of birth or place of residence, may be adopted in accordance with the provisions of this Act. 48-4. Who may adopt children. (a) Any person over twentyone years of age may petition in a special proceeding in the Superior Court to adopt a minor child and may also petition for a change of the name of such child. If the petitioner has a husband or wife living, competent to join in the petition, such spouse shall join in the petition. (b) Provided, however, that if the spouse of the petitioner is a natural parent of the child to be adopted, such spouse need not join in the petition but need only to give consent as provided in G. S. 48-7. (d). (c) Provided further, that the petitioner or petitioners shall have resided in North Carolina, or on Federal territory within the boundaries of North Carolina, for one year next preceding the filing of the petition. 48-5, Parents, etc., not necessary parties to adoption proceedings upon finding of abandonment. (a) In all cases where a court of competent jurisdiction has declared a child to be an abandoned child, the parent, parents, or guardian of the person, declared guilty of such abandonment shall not be necessary parties to any proceeding under this Chapter nor shall their consent be required. (b) In the event that a court of competent jurisdiction has not heretofore declared the child to be an abandoned child, then on written notice of not less than ten days to the parent, parents, or guardian of the person, the court in the adoption proceeding is hereby authorized to determine whether an abandonment has taken place. (c) If the parent, parents, or guardian of the person deny that an abandonment has taken place, this issue of fact shall be determined as provided in G. S. 1-273, and if abandonment is determined, then the consent of the parent, parents, or guardian of the person shall not be required. Upon final determination of this issue of fact the proceeding shall be transferred back to the special proceedings docket for further action by the clerk. (d) A copy of the order of the court declaring a child abandoned must be filed in the proceeding with the petition in which case consent must be given or withheld in accordance with G. S. 48-9, Subsection (2). 48-6. When consent of father not necessary. In the case of a child born out of wedlock and when said child has not been legitimated prior to the time of the signing of the consent, the written consent of the mother alone shall be sufficient under this Chapter and the father need not be made a party to the proceeding. 48-7, When consent of parents is necessary. (a) Except as provided in G. S. 48-5, and G. S. 48-6, and if they are living and have not released all rights to the child and consented generally to adoption as provided in G. S. 48-9, the parents or surviving parent or guardian of the person of the child must be a party or parties of record to the proceeding and must give written consent to adoption, which must be filed with the petition. (b) In any case where the parents or surviving parent or guardian of the person of the child whose adoption is sought are necessary parties and their address is known, or can by due and diligent search be ascertained, that fact must be made known to the court by proper allegation in the petition or by affidavit and service of process must be made upon such person as provided by law for service of process on residents of the State or by service of process on non-residents as provided in G. S. 1-104. (c) If the address of such person cannot be ascertained for the purpose of service of process or service of process cannot be made as hereinbefore provided, that fact must be made known to the court by proper allegation in the petition or by affidavit to the effect that after due and diligent search such person cannot be found for the purpose of service of process. Service of process upon such person may then be made by publication of summons as provided by G. S. Jan-98 et seq., and as provided by law. (d) When a stepparent petitions to adopt a stepchild, consent to the adoption must be given by the spouse of the petitioner, and this adoption shall not affect the relationship of parent and child between such spouse and the child. 48-8, Capacity of parents to consent. A parent who has not reached the age of twenty-one years shall have legal capacity to give consent to adoption and to release such parents rights in a child, and shall be as fully bound thereby as if said parent had attained twenty-one years of age. 48-9. When consent may be given by persons other than parents. (a) In the following instances written consent sufficient tor the purposes of adoption filed with the petition shall be sufficient to make the person giving consent a party to the proceeding and no service of any process need be made upon such person. -1 When the parent, parents, or guardian of the person of the child, has in writing surrendered the child to a superintendent of public welfare of a county or to a licensed child placing agency and at the same time in writing has consented generally to adoption of the child, the superintendent of public welfare or the executive head of such agency may give consent to the adoption of the child by the petitioners. A county superintendent of public welfare may accept the surrender of a child who was born in the county or whose parent or parents have established residence in the county. -2 If the court finds as a fact that there is no person qualified to give consent, or that the child has been abandoned by one or both parents or by the guardian of the person of the child, the court shall appoint some suitable person or the county superintendent of public welfare of the county in which the child resides to act in the proceeding as next friend of the child to give or withhold such consent. The court may make the appointment immediately upon such determination and forthwith may make such further orders as to the court may seem proper. (b) The surrender of the child and consent for the child to be adopted given by the parent or guardian of the person to the superintendent of public welfare or to the licensed child placing agency shall be filed with the petition along with the consent of the superintendent of public welfare or of the executive head of the agency to the adoption prayed for in the petition. (c) Where the child has been surrendered to an agency operating under the laws of another state, and authorized by such state to place children for adoption, the written consent of such agency shall be sufficient for the purposes of this Chapter. 48-10. When childs consent necessary. In any proceeding under this Chapter, a child who is twelve years of age or over or who becomes twelve years of age before the granting of the final order must also consent to the proposed adoption. 48-11. Consent not revocable. No consent described in G. S. 48-6, 48-7, or 48-9, shall be revocable by the consenting party after the entering of an interlocutory decree or a final order of adoption when entering of an interlocutory decree has been waived in accordance with the provisions of G. S..48-21: Provided, no consent shall be revocable after six months from the date of the giving of the consent; provided further, that when the consent has been given generally to a superintendent of public welfare or to a duly licensed child placing agency, it shall not be revocable after thirty days from the date of the giving of the consent. When the consent of any person or agency is required under the provisions of this Chapter, the filing of such consent with the petition shall be sufficient to make the consenting person or agency a party of record to the proceeding. 48-12. Nature of proceeding: venue. Adoption shall be by a special proceeding before the Clerk of the Superior Court. The petition may be filed in the county: -1 where the petitioners reside; or -2 where the child resides; or -3 where the child resided when it became a public charge; or -4 in which is located any licensed child placing agency or institution operating under the laws of this State and having custody of the child or to which the child shall have been surrendered as provided in G. S. 48-9. 48-13. Reference to parental status. No reference shall be made in any petition, interlocutory decree, or final order of adoption to the marital status of the natural parents of the child sought to be adopted, to their fitness for the care and custody of such child, nor shall any reference be made therein to any child being born out of wedlock. In the ease of a child born out of wedlock and not legitimated prior to the time of the signing of the consent, an affidavit setting forth such facts sufficient to show that only the consent required under G. S. 48-6 is necessary shall be filed with and become a part of the report provided for in G. S. 48-16. 48-14, Use of original name of child unnecessary: name used in proceedings for adoption. (a) Only in the report required by G. S. 48-16 on the investigation of the conditions and antecedents of the child sought to be adopted shall the original name of the child given by the natural parent or parents be necessary. (b) In the petition, interlocutory decree, and final order of adoption and in all other papers related to the case the name selected by the petitioner or petitioners as the name for the child may be used as the TRUE and legal name and the original name shall not be necessary. 48-15. The petition for adoption. (a) The captain of the petition shall be substantially as follows: 11 STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA IN THE SUPERIOR COURT Sheree SiR UR che ei hess ote ___COUNTY BEFORE THE CLERK (Full name of adopting father) and PETITION oon pon nnn FOR (Full name of adopting mother) ADOPTION FOR THE ADOPTION OF (Full name of child as used in proceeding) (b) The petition may be prepared on a standard form to be supplied by the State Board of Public Welfare, or may be typewritten, giving all the information hereinafter required. (c) Such petition must state: -1 the full names of the petitioners; -2 the information necessary to-show that the court to which the petition is addressed has jurisdiction; -3 when the petitioners acquired custody of the child, and from what person or agency; -4 the birth date and state or country of birth of the child, if known; -5 the name used for the child in the proceeding; -6 that it is the desire of the petitioners that the relationship of parent and child be established between them and said child; -7 their desire, if they have such, that the name of the child be changed together with the new named desired; -8 the desire of the petitioners that the said child shall, upon adoption, inherit real and personal property in accordance with the statutes of descent and distribution; -9 the value of the personal property and of the real estate owned by the child as far as can be ascertained; -10 that the petitioners are fit persons to have the care and custody of the child; -11 that they are financially able to provide for him; and -12 that there has been full compliance with the law in regard to consent to adoption. (d) The petition must be signed and verified by the petitioners and must be filed in triplicate. The original of the petition shall be held in the office of the Clerk of the Superior Court, a copy sent to the State Board of Public Welfare, and a copy sent to the superintendent of public welfare or to the licensed child placing agency concerned with the order of reference. (e) The names of the adopting parents must be indexed on the plaintiffs or petitioners side of the cross index of special proceedings. The childs name as used in the proceeding must be indexed on the defendants or respondents side of such index. 48-16. Investigation of conditions and antecedents of child and of suitableness of foster home. (a) Upon the filing of a petition for adoption the court shall order the county superintendent of public welfare, or a licensed child placing agency through its authorized representative, to investigate the condition and antecedents of the child for the purpose of ascertaining whether he is a proper subject for adoption, to make appropriate inquiry to determine whether the proposed foster home is a suitable one for the child, and to investigate any other circumstances or conditions which may have a bearing on the adoption and of which the court should have knowledge. (b) The court may order the superintendent of public welfare of one county to make an investigation of the condition and antecedents of the child and the superintendent of public welfare of another county or counties to make any other part of the necessary investigation. (c) The county superintendent or superintendents of public welfare or the authorized representative of such agency described hereinbefore must make a written report within sixty days of his or their findings, on a standard form or following an outline supplied by the State Board of Public Welfare, for examination by the court of adoption. Such report shall be filed with the clerk as a part of the official papers in the adoption proceeding but shall not be retained permanently in the office of the clerk. The clerk shall in no wise be responsible for the permanent custody of the report and said report shall not be open to public inspection except upon order of the court as provided in G. S. 48-26, 48-17. Interlocutory decree of adoption. (a) Upon examination of the written report required in G. S. 48-16, the court may issue in triplicate an interlocutory decree of adoption giving the care and custody of the child to the petitioners. Such interlocutory decree must be issued within six months of the filing of the petition unless a final order is entered as provided in G. S. 48-21 (c). It may be issued on a standard form supplied by the State Board of Public Welfare or may be typewritten, giving all the information hereinafter required. (b) The interlocutory decree must state: -1 that all necessary parties are properly before the court and that the time for answering has expired; -2 the name of the child used in the petition; -3 the full names of the petitioners and their county of residence; -4 the fact and date of filing of the petition; -5 when the petitioners acquired custody of the child and from what person or agency and that proper consent has been given; -6 that the petitioners are fit persons to have the care and custody of the child; -7 that the petitioners are financially able to provide for him; -8 that the child is a suitable child for adoption; and -9 that the adoption is for the best interests of the child. 48-18. Effect of interlocutory decree. (a) Upon issuance of the interlocutory decree the child shall remain or be placed in the care and custody of the petitioners pending further orders of the court. Such decree shall be provisional only and may be rescinded or modified at any time prior to the final order. Until the final order is made, the child shall be a ward of the court having jurisdiction. (b) When a husband and wife have petitioned jointly to adopt and an interlocutory decree has been entered, and the death of one spouse occurs before the time for the entering of the final order, the petition of the living petitioner shall not be invalidated by the fact of the death of the other petitioner, and the court may proceed to grant the adoption to the surviving petitioner. 48-19. Report on placement after interlocutory decree. When the court enters an interlocutory decree of adoption, it must order the county superintendent of public welfare or a licensed child placing agency through its duly authorized representative to supervise the child in its adoptive home and report to the court on the placement on a standard form or following an outline supplied by the State Board of Public Welfare, such report being for examination by the court before entering any final order. 48.90. Dismissal of proceeding. (a) If at any time between the filing of a petition and the issuance of the final order completing the adoption it is made known to the court that circumstances are such that the child should not be given in adoption to the petitioners, the court may dismiss the proceeding. (b) The court before entering an order to dismiss the proceeding must give notice of not less than five days of the motion to dismiss to the petitioners, to the county superintendent of public welfare or licensed child placing agency having made the investigation provided for in G. S. 48-16, and to the State Board of Public Welfare, and they shall be entitled to a hearing to admit or refute the facts upon which the impending action of the court is based. (c) Upon dismissal of an adoption proceeding, the custody of the child shall revert to the county superintendent of public welfare or licensed child placing agency having custody immediately before the filing of the petition. If the placement of the child was made by its natural parents directly with the adoptive parents, the superintendent of public welfare of the county in which the petition was filed shall be notified by the court of such dismissal and said superintendent of public welfare shall be responsible for taking appropriate action for the protection of the child. 48-21. Final order of adoption; termination of proceeding within three years. (a) If no appeal has been taken from any order of the court, the court must complete or dismiss the proceeding by entering a final order within three years of the filing of the petition. A final order of adoption must not be entered earlier than one year from the date of the interlocutory decree except as hereinafter provided. (b) If an appeal is taken from any order of the court, the proceeding must be completed by the court by entering a final order of adoption or a final order dismissing the proceeding within two years from the final judgment upon the appeal. (c) Upon examination of the written report required under G. S. 48-16, the court may, in its discretion, waive the entering of the interlocutory decree and the probationary period and grant a final order of adoption when the child is by blood a grandchild, nephew or niece of one of the petitioners or is the stepchild of the petitioner. (d) Upon examination of the written report required under G. S. 48-16, the court may, in its discretion, shorten the probationary period between the granting of the interlocutory decree and the final order of adoption by the length of time the child has resided in the home of the petitioners prior to the granting of the interlocutory decree; provided that the child was placed in the home of the petitioners by a superintendent of public welfare or by a licensed child placing agency and such fact has been certified to the court by the superintendent of public welfare or the executive head of the child placing agency, but no final order shall be entered until the child shall have resided in the home of the petitioners for a period of one year. 48-22. Contents of final order. (a) The final order of adoption must be entered in triplicate and may be made on a standard form furinshed by the State Board of Public Welfare or may be typewritten, giving all the information hereinafter required. (b) The final order of adoption must state: -1 that all necessary parties are properly before the court and that the time for answering has expired; -2 the name of the child used in the proceeding; -3 the full names of _the petitioners and their county of residence; -4 the date when the petitioners acquired custody of the child and from what person or agency and that proper consent has been given; -5 the fact and date of the filing of the petition; -6 the fact and date of the interlocutory decree if such a decree has been entered; -7 that the petitioners are fit persons to have the care and custody of the child; -8 that the petitioners are financially able to provide for him; -9 that the child is a suitable child for adoption; and -10 that the adoption is for the best interests of the child. (c) The order shall thereupon decree the adoption of the child by the petitioners and may order that the name of the child be changed to that requested in the petition. 48-23. Effect of final order. The final order forthwith shall establish the relationship of parent and child between the petitioners and the child, and, from the date of the signing of the final order of adoption, the child shall be entitled to inherit real and personal property from the adoptive parents in accordance with the statutes of descent and distribution. 48-24, Recordation of adoption proceedings. (a) Only the final order of adoption or the final order dismissing the proceeding, and no other papers relating to the proceeding, shall be recorded in the office of the Clerk of the Superior Court in the county in which the adoption takes place. (b) A copy of the petition, the consent, the report on the condition and: antecedents of the child and the suitability of the foster home, a copy of the interlocutory decree, the report on the placement, and a copy of the final order must be sent by the Clerk of the Superior Court to the State Board of Public Welfare in the following order: -1 Within ten days after the petition is filed with the Clerk of Superior Court, a copy of the petition giving the date of the filing of the original petition, and the consent must be filed by the clerk with the State Board of Public Welfare. -2 Within ten days after an interlocutory decree is entered, a copy of the interlocutory decree giving the date of the issuance of the decree and the report to the court on the condition and antecedents of the child and the suitability of the foster home must be filed by the clerk with the State Board of Public Welfare. When the interlocutory decree is waived, as provided in G. S. 48-21 the said report and the recommendation to waive the interlocutory decree shall be so filed by the clerk. -3 Within ten days after the final order of adoption is made the clerk must file with the State Board of Public Welfare the report on the supervision of the placement during the interlocutory period, and a copy of the final order. (c) The said board must cause all papers and reports related to the proceeding to be permanently indexed and filed. 48-25. Record not to be made public: violation a misdemeanor. (a) Neither the original file of the proceeding in the office of the clerk nor the recording of the proceeding by the State Board of Public Welfare shall be open for general public inspection. (b) With the exception of the information contained in the petition, the interlocutory decree, and the final order, it shall be a misdemeanor for any person having charge of the file or of the record to disclose, except as provided in G. S. 48-26, any information concerning the contents of any other papers in the proceeding. 48-26. Procedure for opening record for necessary information. (a) Any necessary information in the files or the record of an adoption proceeding may be disclosed, to the party requiring it, upon a written motion in the cause before the clerk of original jurisdiction who may issue an order to open the record. Such order must be reviewed by a Judge of the Superior Court and if, in the opinion of said judge, it be to the best interest of the child or of the public to have such information disclosed, he may approve the order to open the record. (b) The original order to open the record must be filed witt the proceeding in the office of the Clerk of Superior Court. Ii the clerk shall refuse to issue such order, the party requesting such order may appeal to the judge who may order that the record be opened, if, in his opinion, it be to the best interest of the child or of the public. 48-27. Procedure when appeal is taken. (a) In the event of an appeal from ruling of the clerk in an adoption proceeding, the clerk must impound all papers and reports not open to the public pending final determination of the appeal. Within ten days after final determination of the appeal, the clerk must forward all papers and reports as specified in G. S. 48-24. (b) The clerk must not at any time furnish to anyone copies or certified copies of any documents in the proceeding other than the petition, the interlocutory decree, and the final order. 48-28. Questioning validity of adoption proceeding. (a) After the final order of adoption is signed, no party to an adoption proceeding nor anyone claiming under such a party may later question the validity of the adoption proceeding by reason of any deiect or irregularity therein, jurisdictional or otherwise, but shall be fully bound thereby, save for such appeal as may be allowed by law. No adoption may be questioned by reason of any procedural or other defect by any one not injured by such defect, nor may any adoption proceeding be attacked either directly or collaterally by any person other than a natural parent or guardian of the person of the child. The failure on the part of the Clerk of the Superior Court, the county superintendent of public welfare, or the executive head of a licensed child placing agency to perform any of the duties or acts within the time required by the provisions of this Act shall not affect the validity of any adoption proceeding. (b) The final order of adoption shall have the force and effect of, and shall be entitled to, all the presumptions attached to a judgment rendered by a court of general jurisdiction. 48-29, Change of name; report to State Registrar; new birth certificate to be made. (a) For the proper cause shown the court may decree that the name of the child shall be changed to such name as may be prayed in the petition. When the name of any child is so changed, the court shall forthwith report such change to the Bureau of Vital Statistics of the State Board of Health. Upon receipt of the report, the State Registrar of the Bureau of Vital Statistics shall prepare a new birth certificate for the child named in the report which shal] contain the following information: full adoptive name of child, sex, race, date of birth, full name of adoptive father, full maiden name of adoptive mother, and such other pertinent information not inconsistent herewith as may be determined by the State Registrar. The city and county of residence of the adoptive parents shall be shown as the place of birth, and the names of the attending physician and the local registrar shall be omitted. No reference shall be made on the new certificate to the adoption of the child, nor shall the adopting parents be referred to as foster parents. (b) The State Registrar shall place the original certificate of birth and all papers in his hand pertaining to the adoption under seal which shall not be broken except in the manner provided in G. S. 48-26 for the opening of the record of adoption. Thereafter when a certified copy of the certificate of birth of such person is issued it shall be in the form of a birth registration ecard containing only the full name, birth date, state of birth, race, sex, date of filing, and birth certificate number, except when an order of a court shall direct the issuance of a copy of the original certificate of birth in the manner hereinbefore provided. (c) The State Registrar shall send a copy of the new birth certificate to the register of deeds of the county where the adoption proceedings were instituted. Upon receipt of the said certificate the register of deeds shall cause it to be filed and indexed in the same manner as provided by law in the case of original birth certificates. Whenever a record of the original birth certificate of the adopted child is also on file in the same county the register of deeds of said county is authorized, empowered, and directed, upon filing the new certificate, to remove and destroy such record of the said original certificate. 48-30. Guardian appointed when custody granted of child with estate. When the court grants the petitioners custody of a child, if the child is an orphan and without guardian and possesses any estate to be administered, the court must appoint a guardian as provided by law. 48-31. Rights of adoptive parents. When a child is adopted pursuant to the provisions of this Chapter, the adoptive parents shall not thereafter be deprived of any rights in the child, at the instance of the natural parents or otherwise, except in the same manner and for the same causes as are applicable in proceedings to deprive natural parents of the children. 48-32. Readoption of child previously adopted. Any minor child may be readopted in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter. All provisions relating to the natural parent or parents shall apply to the adoptive parent or parents, except that in no case of readoption shall a natural parent be made a party to the proceedings nor shall the consent of a natural parent be necessary. For the purposes of service of process, necessary parties, and consent, the adoptive parent shall be substituted for the natural parent. 48-38. Procuring custody of child by forfeiting parents declared crime. Any parent whose rights and privileges have been forfeited as provided by G. S. 48-5 and who shall, otherwise than by legal process, procure the possession and custody of such child with respect to whom his rights and privileges have been forfeited shall be guilty of a crime, and shall be punished as for abduction. 48-34, Past adoption proceedings validated. All proceedings for the adoption of minors in courts of this State are hereby validated and confirmed and the orders and judgments heretofore entered therein are declared to be binding upon all parties to said proceedings and their privies and all other persons, until such orders or judgments shall be vacated as provided by law; provided that this section shall not apply to litigation pending on the effective date of this Act in which the validity of a prior adoption proceeding is involved. 48-35. Prior proceedings not affected. Adoption proceedings pending on date of ratification shall not be affected, except that the provisions of G. S. 48-34 shall apply thereto, and such proceedings shall be completed in accordance with provisions of the statutes in effect at the time such proceedings were instituted; provided that the petitioners in proceedings pending on date of ratification may discontinue such proceedings by taking voluntary nonsuits and, upon paying the costs accrued in such discontinued proceedings, may institute new proceedings under the provisions of this Act, in which cases all of the provisions of this Act shal]l apply.