Justia Criminal Law Opinion Summaries

Articles Posted in Kansas Supreme Court
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In this case from the Supreme Court of Kansas, the defendant, D.W., was convicted of premeditated first-degree murder and criminal discharge of a firearm at an occupied vehicle. The defendant was in the passenger seat of a vehicle when an accomplice in the backseat shot and killed the 16-year-old driver of the car they were pursuing. The defendant was sentenced to life without parole for 50 years and appealed his conviction and sentence.On appeal, the defendant argued that the trial court erred in admitting bodycam footage showing the victim's dying moments, asserting it warranted a new trial. He also claimed that the court imposed an illegal sentence by ordering lifetime post-release supervision on his murder conviction.The Supreme Court disagreed with both arguments. The court determined that the bodycam footage was relevant and its probative value outweighed the risk of undue prejudice. The court also found that the lower court had imposed a term of lifetime parole, not lifetime post-release supervision, which conformed with the applicable sentencing statute. Therefore, the court affirmed the defendant's convictions and sentence. View "State v. D.W." on Justia Law

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In Kansas, Miles Loren Martin was convicted of possession of methamphetamine and possession of a controlled substance without a drug-tax stamp. Martin appealed, arguing that these convictions violated constitutional protections against double jeopardy and a Kansas statute prohibiting multiple convictions for the same conduct.The Kansas Supreme Court rejected Martin's argument. It held that possession of methamphetamine and failure to affix a drug-tax stamp were not the same offenses under the Kansas statute, because the former carried a higher penalty than the latter, and because the latter required an element (failure to affix the stamp) not required for the former. Consequently, the legislature had not prohibited multiple punishments for these offenses.The court also held that Martin's convictions did not violate the Double Jeopardy Clauses of the U.S. and Kansas Constitutions. It reasoned that the legislature intended to impose multiple punishments for the offenses because they targeted different conduct (possession of an illegal narcotic versus failure to pay a drug tax) and carried different penalties.On Martin's challenge to the search of his pill bottle, the court found that the search fell within the exception for a search incident to a lawful arrest. The court noted that the officer had a legitimate basis to arrest Martin before the search and that the arrest followed shortly after the search. The court also found that the search of the bottle did not exceed the permissible scope of a search incident to arrest. View "State v. Martin" on Justia Law

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In this decision from the Supreme Court of the State of Kansas, the defendant, Jerome Edwards, appealed the denial of his 2022 motion for DNA testing. Edwards had previously filed similar motions in 2011, 2018, and 2022 asking for DNA testing of biological materials on a cigarette butt and a bullet, both of which were denied. He argued that the district court erred by applying the "law of the case" doctrine to deny his 2022 motion, stating that the court did not have jurisdiction over his case when it denied the 2018 motion as he had an appeal pending at the same time.The Supreme Court held that K.S.A. 21-2512, the law governing DNA testing, grants the district court jurisdiction to consider and act on a motion seeking DNA testing even after an appeal has been docketed. This conclusion was based on the plain language of the law, which allows a defendant to seek DNA testing "at any time" and "[n]otwithstanding any other provision of law." The court also held that the law of the case doctrine applied to the defendant's 2022 motion, as it sought DNA testing of the same evidence as his 2018 motion. Therefore, the district court correctly applied the law of the case doctrine to deny Edwards' 2022 motion for DNA testing. Finally, the court affirmed the district court's decision. View "State v. Edwards" on Justia Law

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Carol Sue Burris was convicted of mistreatment of a dependent adult and the second-degree reckless murder of her husband, Michael Burris, who suffered from dementia and other significant health issues. Carol, as Michael's sole caregiver, was found to have neglected his care and prevented others from helping him. Michael subsequently died of pneumonia with severe emaciation as a significant underlying factor.Carol appealed her conviction, arguing that her conviction for reckless but unintentional second-degree murder should be reversed, as it was based solely on a failure of care—that is, on things she did not do rather than affirmative acts she did. Her argument was premised on the idea that she had no duty to act—to provide the care at issue—under these facts.The Supreme Court of the State of Kansas affirmed the lower court's decision, stating that Carol owed a clearly defined legal duty of care to her husband, based on their marital relationship, her voluntary assumption of Michael's care, and her role as Michael's sole caregiver under K.S.A. 2022 Supp. 21-5417. The prosecutor's comments during closing arguments were found not to be in error, and thus, Carol's convictions were upheld.The court held that a person may be held criminally liable for a failure to act if that person owes a legal duty of care, which can arise out of either common law or legislative enactment. A legal duty of care is imposed at common law when a person is in a special relationship with another, such as marriage, or when a person has voluntarily assumed the care of another and has prevented others from rendering aid. K.S.A. 2022 Supp. 21-5417 imposes a legal duty of care on the primary caregivers of dependent adults. View "State v. Burris" on Justia Law

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The Supreme Court of the State of Kansas reversed a lower court's decision, holding that a warrantless traffic stop and subsequent search of a vehicle was unconstitutional under the Fourth Amendment. The case involved Tyler Brandon McDonald, who was stopped by a sheriff's deputy while parked at a public park. The deputy, citing concern for public safety based on a previous murder-suicide in the same area, initiated a public welfare stop. Upon approaching the vehicle, the deputy smelled marijuana, leading to a search of the vehicle and McDonald's subsequent conviction for possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.According to the court, the Fourth Amendment protects individuals from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government. A public safety stop is considered a seizure and an exception to the Fourth Amendment's warrant requirement, but it must be justified based on specific and articulable facts that indicate a threat to public safety. Suspicion of criminal activity does not justify a public welfare stop.In this case, the court found that the deputy's reasons for the stop (the late hour, the secluded location, the fact that McDonald was alone, and the deputy's knowledge of past criminal activity in the area) were insufficient to support a public safety stop. The court pointed out that McDonald was parked legally in an open public park, was not in an adverse physical state, and did not appear to be at risk of self-harm. The court concluded that the stop was unconstitutional, reversed the judgment of the lower courts, and reversed McDonald's convictions. View "State v. McDonald" on Justia Law

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In the case before the Supreme Court of Kansas, the appellant, Paul Guebara, was convicted of attempted first-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon by a felon. Guebara had stipulated that he had previously been convicted of "a felony crime" without further detail. The Court of Appeals reversed the criminal-possession conviction, finding that a generic stipulation did not establish that a defendant had been convicted of a felony that would prohibit him from possessing a weapon. The Supreme Court affirmed this decision, explaining that because Kansas' possession-of-a-weapon ban applies only to people who have committed certain felonies, a generic stipulation to "a felony" is insufficient. The court also noted that the district court failed to obtain a jury-trial waiver before accepting Guebara's stipulation, which it deemed to be a constitutional error. However, both errors were found to be harmless beyond a reasonable doubt, as Guebara did not contest his status as a prohibited felon, and the State had conclusive evidence to prove this element. Therefore, the Supreme Court affirmed Guebara's convictions. View "State v. Guebara" on Justia Law

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The Supreme Court of Kansas affirmed the convictions of Todge Anton Anderson for first-degree felony murder, second-degree intentional murder, aggravated robbery, distributing or possessing with intent to distribute a controlled substance, and criminal possession of a weapon. The court held that the trial court did not abuse its discretion by not excluding evidence of a jail call as a sanction for a discovery violation, given that the evidence was disclosed before the start of the trial and the defendant had reviewed it. The prosecutor did commit error during closing arguments by suggesting that the burden of proof was on the defendant; however, the court determined that this error did not affect the outcome of the trial. The court also found there was sufficient evidence to support Anderson’s conviction for distributing synthetic marijuana or possessing it with intent to distribute. Lastly, the court vacated the trial court's order for Anderson to pay $5,000 in attorney fees without considering the burden of payment on the defendant, and remanded for reconsideration of that issue. View "State v. Anderson" on Justia Law

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This case revolves around whether the Supreme Court of the State of Kansas can exercise jurisdiction over an appeal that was not filed within the statutory time limit. The appellant, Leroy L. Perry, was convicted of murder in the 1990s and filed a self-represented motion in district court to modify his life sentence. The court denied the motion and, a year and a half later, Perry filed a notice of appeal, asserting that he had never received the order denying his motion.The Supreme Court remanded the case to the district court to make factual findings about the notice of appeal's untimeliness. The district court found that Perry did receive the order shortly after it was mailed to him and held that Perry could not show excusable neglect for his failure to timely appeal. Perry appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing that he didn't receive the order until after receiving a report in October 2019.The Supreme Court affirmed the district court's findings. It reasoned that Perry would not have known there was a decision to appeal, nor the precise date the order was filed, unless he had received the order shortly after the clerk sent it to him. The court concluded that Perry's appeal was untimely under Kansas state statute and dismissed it for lack of jurisdiction. The court did not reach the State's excusable neglect argument. View "State v. Perry" on Justia Law

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In Kansas, Richard Daniel Showalter was convicted of two counts of first-degree premeditated murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, and aggravated burglary. Showalter appealed his convictions, arguing that the trial court erred by admitting certain autopsy photographs, deposition testimony from an unavailable witness, and statements made by one of his co-conspirators. Regarding the autopsy photographs, Showalter argued they were gruesome and prejudicial, but the court found the photographs were relevant and their probative value outweighed any potential prejudice. As for the deposition testimony, Showalter claimed the court erred in finding the witness was unavailable to testify at trial, but the court ruled that the State made sufficient efforts to establish the witness’s unavailability. Regarding the co-conspirator's statements, Showalter argued they were irrelevant because the State did not prove he was aware of the co-conspirator’s claims, but the court found the statements were relevant to explain the motive and intent behind the murders. Lastly, Showalter argued that the cumulative effect of these alleged errors violated his constitutional right to a fair trial, but the court found no cumulative error as it did not find any individual errors. Accordingly, the court affirmed Showalter’s convictions. View "State v. Showalter" on Justia Law

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In Kansas, the appellant, Darnell D. Coleman, was convicted of first-degree premeditated murder and appealed his conviction. He raised four issues on appeal: (1) the prosecutors made incorrect statements of law and fact about premeditation during closing arguments, (2) the court failed to give a modified jury instruction on premeditation that had been approved in previous cases, (3) the court erred by not removing his trial counsel after a breakdown in communication, and (4) cumulative errors deprived him of a fair trial.The Supreme Court of the State of Kansas found that the prosecutors made three errors during closing arguments that disregarded the cognitive component of premeditation, but these errors did not individually or cumulatively affect the outcome of the trial. The court also held that the trial judge did not err in the instructions given to the jury on premeditation, and did not abuse discretion by not removing Coleman's trial counsel. The court concluded that the cumulative effect of the errors did not affect the jury's verdict. Consequently, Coleman's conviction was affirmed by the court. View "State v. Coleman" on Justia Law