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Public Defense Attorney

Widely known for excellence in criminal defense and other legal services, Mr. Baity has been practicing law for 23 years.  Mr. Baity's areas of concentration include Criminal Defense, Serious Felonies, Misdemeanors, DWI, Traffic Matters, Wrongful Death, Serious Personal Injury, Wills, and Uncontested Divorces.  Mr. Baity is a 2019, 2018, 2017 & 2016 Member of The National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Trial Lawyers.  Mr. Baity has been awarded 10 Best Attorneys-North Carolina in 2017 and 2018 by American Institute of DUI/DWI Attorneys. Mr. Baity is currently the 2020 Iredell County Bar Association President.  Mr. Baity served as the 2012-2013 President of the 22A Judicial District Bar which encompasses Iredell and Alexander Counties.  Mr. Baity is a member of the N.C. State Bar, the North Carolina Bar Association, the Iredell County Bar Association, and serves on a local criminal law committee and a jail/facilities committee.  He is admitted to practice in State and Federal Court.. As a trial attorney, Mr. Baity Successfully commands attention in the courtroom.  He routinely handles cases in Superior, District and Administrative Courts.. See his website at for more information.

As an attorney, my goal is to use my education and experience to provide each of my clients with excellent legal representation and to help resolve personal and business issues that happen in life.  Many times, the need for an attorney is due to a stressful or negative experience.  Having my own firm allows me to dedicate my time to your individual needs and protecting your rights.. I practice and have experience in several areas of law including: traffic, criminal, family, divorce, custody, personal injury, disability, as well as wills, trusts and estate planning.  Whether you are going through a divorce, have been injured on the job or need some assistance with planning for your future, we are here to help.. I grew up in Kings Mountain, NC where I participated in many sports and activities.  I received a scholarship from Appalachian State University to become a high school history teacher.  I graduated from Appalachian State University in 2002 and worked as a high school teacher at Hunter Huss High School in Gastonia, North Carolina.   My education and experience as a teacher allows me best serve my clients in trials and negotiations.  Many times judges and juries depend on the attorney to teach the law and present complex factual scenarios in an understandable manner.  I rely on my training and experience as a former teacher to present each case in a way that helps to educate the judge or jury.. After teaching in Gastonia, North Carolina, I decided to attend law school.  I graduated from the University Of South Carolina School Of Law in the spring of 2008.  My family and I relocated to my wife’s hometown of Statesville, North Carolina, where I enjoy many aspects of community involvement.  It is important to me to give back to the community I live in; therefore, I volunteer on many different boards including: United Way of Iredell County Board of Directors and Executive Committee, YMCA of Statesville – Local Board of Directors, Mitchell Community College Endowment Board, and the Civil Service Board.. I am a member of the Greater Statesville Rotary Club where I am a Paul Harris Member.   I attend church at First Presbyterian Church of Statesville and enjoy spending time with my children and family.  I am an avid Appalachian State University football fan and spend many Saturday afternoons in Boone, NC watching the team play.

When you retain our talented, versatile lawyer to represent you for a criminal, personal injury or workplace accident matter, you are tapping into Michael D. Cleaves's 15 years of experience and reputation for results.. The Law Office of Michael D. Cleaves, PLLC, was established to help people just like you in North Carolina, with families just like yours and legal problems that need solving.. Mr. Cleaves ensures that your rights are protected before judge and jury, in negotiations with insurers after an accident and in the hospital after a disabling injury sidelines you from your job.

Tom Morris is a founding partner at Morris & Fox, Attorneys at Law, PLLC. Tom has spent his career focusing on protecting families and individuals in both family law and criminal cases. Experienced in both state and federal courts, Tom is ready to fight for you no matter where your case is. He is admitted to the North Carolina Bar and the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina.

Christina Clodfelter was raised in Statesville, NC, and is a graduate of Statesville High School. She received a B.A. degree in Political Science and English from the University of South Carolina in 2007. She then returned to North Carolina where she received her Juris Doctorate from the University of North Carolina School of Law. Ms. Clodfelter lives in Statesville and practices in the Statesville office. Ms. Clodfelter is excited to be practicing law in her hometown. She enjoys spending time with her family, who has strong ties to the Statesville community, and is an active South Carolina Gamecock fan.

Marisa grew up in Dutchess County, New York. She received her Bachelor of Arts Degree from The College of Saint Rose in Albany, New York; English major and a Criminal Justice minor. Marisa moved to Charlotte, North Carolina, where she earned her Juris Doctor Degree. Since, Marisa has been admitted to the North Carolina State Bar and practicing law in Iredell and surrounding counties since 2015. Marisa also volunteers her time as Judge and Attorney mentor with the Iredell County’s Teen Court Program and advises young adults who are litigating real cases in their community. When not at work Marisa enjoys riding horses, barrel racing, four wheeling, boating, all while spending time with family and friends.

I have practiced law since 2004 and tried more than 25 cases to a jury verdict.  I have represented persons accused of crimes ranging from driving with a license suspended to murder, along with a general practice.

SUMMARY:  Joe Kennedy is a former prosecutor who has successfully handled tens of thousands of criminal cases, including hundreds of DWI trials. He has attended concentrated training courses in a variety of areas, including the Intox EC/IR II (Intoximeter) Operator School Conducted by the NC Department of Health and Human Services, as well as DWI Detection & Standardized Field Sobriety Testing promulgated by NHTSA.  He has also attended the Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement (ARIDE) promulgated by NHTSA.. Joe Kennedy has lived in Carteret County since 2009 and resides in Morehead City with his wife, Natalie. Prior to joining Cummings & Cummings in June of 2012, Joe prosecuted thousands of criminal and traffic cases, including hundreds of Driving While Impaired offenses for District Attorney Scott Thomas in the district’s Beaufort office. Joe attended concentrated training in a variety of areas, including the Intox EC/IR II (Intoximeter) Operator School Conducted by the NC Department of Health and Human Services. As a prosecutor, Joe studied the strategies and tactics of elders in the criminal defense bar, while learning valuable lessons from seasoned law enforcement professionals. He also met his wife, Natalie, who was then employed as a Special Agent with the NC Department of Public Safety’s Alcohol Law Enforcement Division.. While employed as a prosecutor, Joe also served on the adjunct faculty at Carteret Community College and taught classes in Criminal Law and Constitutional Law.  Joe still serves on the College’s Board of Law and Technology.. Prior to joining the District Attorney’s office in April of 2010, Joe was a private solo practitioner and concentrated his practice exclusively in the area of criminal defense.. Joe gained admission to the North Carolina State Bar in 2006, the same year that he graduated from Samford University’s Cumberland School of Law. Joe graduated in the top 20% of his class and earned a spot on the Dean’s List every semester. While At Cumberland, Joe was president of the school's Federalist Society chapter and North Carolina student Bar Association.. While in law school, Joe interned as a Civilian Summer Law Clerk at the Joint Law Center aboard Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point.  That experience gave him an appreciation for the unique legal issues that face the men and women in uniform who are stationed near the Crystal Coast.. Joe received his BA in Journalism and Mass Communication from UNC Chapel Hill in 2000. While at Chapel Hill, Joe was a member and treasurer of the Upsilon Chapter of Kappa Alpha Order.  Joe also interned with (then) Congressman Richard Burr’s Washington, DC office.  After graduation, Joe worked in Raleigh and Charlotte, North Carolina before attending law school.. Joe is a member of the Carteret County Bar, District 3-B Bar, N.C. Bar Association and North Carolina Academy of Trial Lawyers. He limits his practice Criminal, DWI and Traffic law to ensure that his clients get the maximum amount of attention and resources for the best possible outcome.  When not at work, he enjoys boating, hunting and fishing with his wife, Natalie, and Labrador Retriever, Boone.

Joel Hancock is a native of Carteret County, NC. He was born and raised on Harkers Island by Susan and Joel Hancock, Sr. He has four older sisters, Emily, Joella, Alyson, and Leah; and a little brother, Mike.. On the first day of school at East Carteret High School in Beaufort, NC, Joel sat beside Lauren Sechler in Ms. Gillikin’s Art I class. After 10 years of dating, Joel and Lauren were married in 2008. They had both just graduated from East Carolina University, where Lauren was a cheerleader for the Pirates and where Joel finished first in his class with a degree in Economics.. Joel and Lauren’s first baby boy, Calvin (or “Cal-boy,” as they call him) was born in 2011 during Joel’s final year of law school at The Penn State Dickinson School of Law. As an infant, Cal-boy went to class with Joel and stole kisses from Joel’s classmates.. After graduating law school and passing the Pennsylvania Bar, Joel, Lauren and Calvin moved back to Harkers Island where Joel hung drywall and studied for the North Carolina Bar. In May of 2013, Joel was sworn in as an Attorney and Counselor at Law in Carteret County District Court by the Honorable Peter Mack. A special guest in attendance that day was Oliver (“Ollie”), Joel and Lauren’s second baby boy, who was just one week old.. In September of 2015 as Joel was in court defending clients, he received a text from Lauren: She was in labor. A few hours later, the couple’s third baby boy, Levi, was born at Carteret Health Care in Morehead City, NC.. In May of 2018, after five years of representing thousands of clients charged with everything from simple seat belt tickets to serious felonies, Joel opened Hancock Law Firm in Beaufort, NC, so he could devote 100% of his time at work to providing elite representation to his clients, and devote 100% of his time away from work to his family and friends.. When Joel isn’t in the courtroom or meeting clients face-to-face, he prefers to be watching UFC fights with Lauren, fishing with his boys, hunting with his friends, training jiu-jitsu, or grilling at his home for whomever wants to come by for dinner.

For the last 10 years I have only practiced criminal law in Carteret County, N.C.  During that time I have handled over a thousand DWI's and thousands and thousands of other types of criminal cases for ally types of clients.  I only handle criminal law cases because I truly believe it allows me to give the best representation to my clients.  If you a friend or a loved one needs a criminal attorney in Carteret County, N.C. give us a call and Cummings and Kennedy.  We are experienced, local and trusted by our client's when it matters most.