In North Carolina, we have something called the Fourteenth Amendment Right, or the “Peterson Presumption.”  Simply put, a parent has a Fourteenth Amendment right to care for and nurture her child.  Furthermore, in North Carolina, as in a majority of the other states, this principle gives rise to a presumption that in a dispute between a parent and non-parent, the parent prevails.  In fact, the North Carolina Supreme Court has specifically held that in a custody dispute between a parent and a non parent, the parent must prevail unless the judge finds that the parent is unfit, has neglected the child, or has engaged in conduct inconsistent with the parental status.