Joel Merritt Wagoner

Merritt Wagoner is a criminal defense attorney who has defended people in North Carolina for more than 21 years. He works in state court in New Hanover County and Pender County, and in federal court in the Eastern District of North Carolina, where he is admitted. If you are facing charges, his job is simple. He stands between you and the system and tells you, in plain language, where you stand and what to do next.

You are facing this for the first time. Merritt has stood in these courtrooms for more than 21 years. That gap is the whole point. When you do not know what comes next, who makes the decisions, or what the prosecutor is after, those questions can keep you up at night. Most people around you cannot answer them.

Merritt can. He has represented people in your position many times, and the first thing he does is take the weight of the unknown off you. He explains what is actually happening and tells you what your real options are. Not a script, and not false comfort.

Your case is yours. Merritt's role is to be the steady guide beside you: honest about the hard parts, clear about the path, and reachable when you need him.

His experience in state and federal court
Merritt works in two court systems and knows both. In state court, he appears in New Hanover County and Pender County, in front of the same judges and prosecutors most weeks of the year. In federal court, he is admitted in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, where many local attorneys do not practice.

That matters because the two systems run on different rules, and the stakes and procedures are not the same. Knowing how a case tends to move in each room means Merritt can tell you how yours is likely to proceed, based on the courts where it will actually be decided.

He defends a wide range of charges, from DWI and drug cases to domestic violence matters and serious felonies, in both systems. If you are unsure whether your charge is something he handles, the fastest answer is to call and ask.

How he works with you
From your first contact, you will know where your case stands and what is coming next. Merritt reviews the discovery, looks closely at how the evidence was gathered, files the motions that need filing, and explains his strategy in language you can follow.

He negotiates when that serves you and prepares for trial when it does not. The point is that you are never left guessing about your own case, and you are never doing this alone.

When you reach out, you can call or text, or book a consultation on the booking page. Reaching out is the first step toward a plan. It does not by itself create an attorney-client relationship; that begins once Merritt has reviewed your situation and you have agreed to work together.