Justia Criminal Law Opinion Summaries

The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the court of appeals reversing the decision of the district court denying Appellant's motion for postconviction relief, holding that the court of appeals erred by granting relief on a claim that Appellant did not present to the district court.Appellant filed a motion for postconviction relief asserting that his failure timely to appeal his convictions was due to the ineffective assistance of his counsel. The district court denied the motion. The court of appeals reversed, concluding that the district court did not err in finding that Appellant did not direct counsel to file an appeal but that counsel provided ineffective assistance by failing to consult with Appellant as to whether he wished to appeal. The Supreme Court reversed, holding (1) Appellant did not allege in his postconviction motion that trial counsel failed to consult with him about whether he wanted an appeal; and (2) therefore, the court of appeals erred by reversing the district court's decision on that basis. View "State v. Ammons" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's resentencing for the eight felony crimes he committed when he was seventeen years old, holding that there was no merit to Defendant's arguments that the district court imposed an excessive aggregate sentence or an unlawful de facto life sentence.Defendant was convicted of two counts of first degree murder and related crimes. The court sentenced Defendant to mandatory life imprisonment for each first degree murder conviction and to twelve to fifteen years of prison for each remaining conviction, with all sentences to run concurrently except the sentences for weapon convictions, which were to run consecutively to the sentence for the underlying felony conviction. The Supreme Court remanded the case for resentencing. On remand, the district court resentenced Defendant to a combined sentence of 128 to 180 years' imprisonment. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the district court did not abuse its discretion in resentencing Defendant. View "State v. Ramirez" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction of driving under the influence causing serious bodily injury and his sentence to an eighteen-month term of imprisonment, eighteen months of post-release supervision, and revocation of his driver's license, holding that Defendant was not entitled to relief on his allegations of error.On appeal, Defendant argued that the district court erred by overruling his motion to suppress the results of a breath test administered to him using a DataMaster instrument and by imposing an excessive sentence. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the district court did not err in admitting the results of the DataMaster test; and (2) Defendant's sentence, which was within the applicable statutory range, was not excessive. View "State v. Alkazahy" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction and sentence for first-degree murder and use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony, holding that the evidence at trial was sufficient to support Defendant's convictions.During the underlying jury trial, the prosecution presented various forms of circumstantial evidence connecting Defendant to the shooting death of the victim int his case. On appeal, Defendant argued, among other things, that the district court erred in admitting "manipulated video surveillance from multiple sources in [an] attempt to match the walking pattern of the individuals in those videos to a video depicting [Defendant] walking." The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the district court did not abuse its discretion in admitting the challenged evidence; (2) the evidence was sufficient to convict Defendant of first-degree murder and use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony; and (3) Defendant was not entitled to relief on his ineffective assistance of counsel claim. View "State v. Lorello" on Justia Law

In this case brought against Defendant, the sheriff of Dawes County, for failing to receive a lawfully-committed prisoner into the county jail the Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court affirming the judgment of the county court convicting and sentencing Defendant for official misconduct in violation of Neb. Rev. Stat. 28-924, holding that there was no error.Defendant was charged with official misconduct for refusing to receive a prisoner, who was arrested without a warrant for felony offenses, and the county court found Defendant guilty. The district court affirmed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the plain meaning of "lawful commitment" does not require a court order; (2) because a trier of fact found that Defendant's claim that the decision not to receive the prisoner based on the Jail Standards was not credible, Defendant was not entitled to relief on this allegation of error; (3) Defendant was not entitled to relief on his claim that, absent a court order, sheriffs effectively have inherent authority to decline to receive arrestees; and (4) Defendant was not entitled to relief on his remaining assignments of error. View "State v. Dailey" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court dismissed Defendant's appeal from his conviction and sentence, holding that Defendant's agreement to waive his right to appeal applied to and was enforceable against his claim of ineffective assistance of counsel.Prior to the sentencing hearing for his convictions for possession of methamphetamine and driving under the influence Defendant entered into a plea and sentencing agreement agreeing in a second case to plead no contest to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and to waive his right to appeal issues in both cases. The district court accepted the plea and sentence agreement and sentenced Defendant in both cases. The Supreme Court dismissed Defendant's ensuing appeal asserting that trial counsel was ineffective for allowing Defendant to testify in his own behalf and for eliciting incriminating testimony, holding that Defendant validly waived the right to raise his claim of ineffective assistance of trial counsel on appeal. View "State v. Hamm" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the conclusion of the court of appeals that the record refuted two of Appellant's claims of ineffective assistance of counsel for failure to object to improper evidence under Neb. Rev. Stat. 27-404, holding that, while this Court's reasoning differed from that employed by the court of appeals, there was no error in the court's ultimate judgment.After a jury trial, Appellant was convicted of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and sentenced to a term of twenty-five to thirty years' imprisonment. The court of appeals affirmed, thus rejecting Appellant's claim of ineffective assistance of counsel for counsel's failure to object to improper rule 404 evidence. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that, while this Court's reasoning differed from that employed by the court of appeals, this Court's conclusion on the judgment was the same. View "State v. Wheeler" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court convicting Defendant for possession with intent to distribute marijuana and failure to affix a tax stamp, holding that Defendant was not entitled to relief on his claims of error.Specifically, the Supreme Court held that the district court (1) did not err by denying Defendant's motion to suppress evidence of marijuana found when law enforcement conducted a warrantless search of a duffel bag and suitcase on a passenger trial; (2) did not err in failing to suppress certain testimony at trial; (3) did not abuse its discretion in denying Defendant's motion for a mistrial; and (4) did not abuse its wide discretion in sentencing Defendant to four to six years of imprisonment for possession with intent to distribute marijuana. View "State v. Vaughn" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court denying Defendant's motion for postconviction relief without holding an evidentiary hearing, holding that the district court did not err in determining that all of Defendant's claims were either insufficiently pled or affirmatively refuted by the record.Defendant, in inmate who was serving consecutive sentences for three convictions, including a life sentence for first degree murder, brought this motion alleging ineffective assistance of counsel both at trial and on direct appeal. The district court denied the motion after determining that all of Defendant's claims were either insufficiently pled or affirmatively refuted by the record. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that none of Defendant's claims warranted an evidentiary hearing and that the district court properly overruled Defendant's motions to add exhibits and to appoint counsel. View "State v. Cox" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction and sentence on one count of assault in the second degree and one count of negligent child abuse, holding that Defendant was not entitled to relief on her claims of error.Specifically, the Supreme Court held (1) Defendant's claims of ineffective assistance of counsel were unavailing; (2) Defendant failed to preserve for appellate review his argument that the trial court erred by excepting from its sequestration order an eyewitness to the crimes who was the wife of one victim and mother of the other; (3) the trial court did not err by refusing to give a self-defense instruction; and (4) the trial court did not abuse its discretion in determining that Defendant was not a suitable candidate for probation. View "State v. Johnson" on Justia Law