Nielsen v. State

The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant’s conviction of first-degree felony murder and sentence of life imprisonment, holding that Defendant failed to demonstrate plain error in testimony elicited from medical experts concerning a diagnosis that has a distinct legal meaning.On appeal, Defendant argued that the State’s medical experts offered improper testimony as to Defendant’s guilt or credibility. The Supreme Court disagreed, holding (1) the district court did not err in permitting the challenged testimony because the diagnoses contained terms with distinct legal meanings that did not equate to expressing an opinion as to Defendant’s guilt; (2) Defendant did not demonstrate plain error in testimony elicited from medical experts concerning inconsistencies between Defendant’s proposed mechanism of injury and their observations of the victim’s injuries; and (3) Defendant did not demonstrate plain error in the State’s cross-examination of a certified forensic pathologist. View "Nielsen v. State" on Justia Law