In Corum v. University of North Carolina, 330 N.C. 761, 788, 413 S.E.2d 276, 293, cert. denied, 506 U.S. 985, 121 L. Ed. 2d 431, 113 S. Ct. 493 (1992), the North Carolina Supreme Court held the doctrine of sovereign immunity does not bar a direct claim against the State when the claim is based on a violation of the Declaration of Rights of the North Carolina Constitution. Corum, 330 N.C. at 786, 413 S.E.2d at 292. The Corum court stated "when there is a clash between . . . constitutional rights and sovereign immunity, the constitutional rights must prevail." Id.