A North Carolina state senator received a suspended 30-day jail sentence and a year of probation for an October drunk driving charge.

Sen. Norm Sanderson, R-Pamlico, was arrested for DWI by the state highway patrol Oct. 18, 2025, near Lenovo Center in Raleigh, according to Wake County arrest records. 

Sanderson was also charged with misdemeanors for transporting an open container of alcohol and failing to obey a traffic officer, according to court records. His blood alcohol level was .16%. 

Longtime eastern NC state senator arrested and charged for DWI

Court records from June 10, 2026, show that Sanderson pled guilty to DWI, while the other charges were dropped under a plea agreement. 

Wake County Judge James Fullwood sentenced him to 30 days in jail, suspended, plus a year of unsupervised probation. Records show Sanderson had already completed a required substance abuse assessment and treatment and 48 hours of public service at the time of sentencing. 

Sanderson’s driver’s license was also suspended for a year, but he was granted limited driving privileges by the court.  

Sanderson represents parts of eight eastern counties in the Senate, where he has served for seven terms. He holds leadership positions on budget and agriculture committees.

Neither Sanderson nor Senate Leader Phil Berger’s office immediately responded to NC Newsline’s request for comment on the resolution of the case, but at the time of his arrest, Sanderson apologized for the incident.

“Last night I made a regrettable mistake, and I take responsibility for my actions,” Sanderson said in October.