Legal Question in Criminal Law in North Carolina

Because there would be an appearance of impropriety (the possibility the detective would be biased toward the family member), normally a detective would not be allowed to investigate a case involving a family member. However, it is not necessarily illegal or wrong - just not the best practice. There are situations where this can not be avoided such as in small communities where everyone knows everyone and there are lots of family ties through out the community or perhaps where there are no other detectives free to work the case.