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More than two centuries ago, when the United States Constitution was initially signed, the First Congress penned original copies of the Bill of Rights for all 14 states.

The story of North Carolina’s copy doesn’t just end there, however. Seventy-six years later, it went missing.

This year, the theft and eventual recovery of the document in 2003 will be the focal point of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Constitution Day on Sept. 16.

Hosted by the UNC School of Law, the celebration will feature guest speaker Judge Frank D. Whitney at the UNC School of Law Rotunda at noon.

For the past several years, UNC’s School of Law has served as the host of the campus-wide UNC-Chapel Hill Constitution Day celebration. Each year on Sept. 17, pursuant to a 2004 federal statute, schools and colleges in the United States take time to celebrate and commemorate the day on which the Constitution of the United States was signed.

Constitution Day presents an opportunity to reflect upon the deeper meanings of the Constitution and the hopes it embodies for the future of the country and the world. Because Constitution Day falls on Saturday, the University will celebrate the federal observance on Sept. 16.

Whitney, the Chief United States District Judge for the Western District of North Carolina, will discuss the timeline of events and the significance of the recovery of the Bill of Rights.

While serving as United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Whitney supervised the federal litigation of the recovery of the Bill of Rights.

The event is open to the public. Light refreshments will be served.

Published September 15, 2016.