- County attorney races
Posted July 18, 2008, 2:44 pm by Randall Hodgkinson
Here is a Hutch News article reporting on several county attorney races around the state, including PD Lynn Koehn running for Haskell County Attorney. If you have any other info about interesting prosecutorial races, please comment--especially if they involve criminal defense attorneys.
- New blog on juvenile right to a jury trial
Posted July 16, 2008, 9:30 am by Randall Hodgkinson
Paul Shipp, who recently won in In re L.M., (as blogged about here) establishing the right to a jury trial for juvenile defendants in Kansas, has apparently gotten a lot of questions and decided to start a blog to help foster discussion. Give it a look. It is called Inrelm and it includes links to download all of the briefs and pleadings from the case. And it invites readers to comment on possible applications or other issues stemming from the case. Maybe this can be the start of a Kansas...
- Don't argue with yourself [NOT FINAL]
Posted July 12, 2008, 10:39 am by Randall Hodgkinson
Monique K. Centeno, Lawrence W. Williamson, Jr., and Sean Shores won in State v. Toney, No. 97,326 (Kan App. July 11, 2008), remanding for a new hearing on Mr. Toney's motion to withdraw his plea in a Sedgwick County burglary prosecution. The claim on appeal was that Mr. Toney's attorney at his hearing on his motion to withdraw his plea was the subject of the motion itself. The COA agreed that the situation was likely to cause a conflict of interest: [W]e are persuaded that Toney's public...
- Fifteen apply for Dowd's seat
Posted July 12, 2008, 10:26 am by Randall Hodgkinson
Here is a Topeka Capital-Journal article reporting that fifteen applied for the district judge vacancy to be created by Judge Dowd's upcoming retirement. The list includes the attorneys who were on the most recent short list blogged about here. If you have comments that would be useful to the nominating commission, get them in soon. Of the fifteen that applied, two work at the district attorneys office and two work at the attorney general's office (one appellate and one civil). As far as I...
- Limits on Candor to Court
Posted July 7, 2008, 4:00 pm by Carl Folsom
Patrick Dunn won in State v. Hemphill, Nos. 95,209 and 95,210 (Kan. July 3, 2008). The KSC reversed the district court's denial of Hemphill's motions to appeal out of time (one for his sentence and one for his motion to withdraw his plea). The KSC ordered a new plea withdrawal hearing under Kargus v. State and ordered an Ortiz hearing regarding Hemphill's failure to timely appeal his sentence. Here is a Hutchinson News article reporting the case. Whether Mr. Hemphill was entitled to late direct...
- Inconsistent verdicts?
Posted July 7, 2008, 2:05 pm by Randall Hodgkinson
I noted that the Maryland Court of Appeals recently abandoned its long-standing common law precedent allowing inconsistent verdicts in criminal cases. In Price v. State, the Maryland high court acknowledged that many other jurisdictions permit such verdicts and that it had long allowed such verdicts. But it also noted that it had narrowed the acceptance somewhat over the years, for example, by disallowing inconsistent verdicts in bench trials. The Maryland court also relied heavily on the fact...
- Out with the new, in with the old
Posted July 7, 2008, 11:19 am by Randall Hodgkinson
I guess I knew that when somebody takes the Colorado Bar Exam, it's probably not to enhance her resume at the ADO. Sarah Morrison left the ADO late last month to move to Colorado to join a small firm there. A lot of Sarah's family is in the Denver area, so it really wasn't a big surprise. But sad nonetheless. Sarah just got a win in State v. Gore, reversing an aggravated criminal sodomy conviction on statutory speedy trial grounds. The silver lining is that Sarah's departure made room for the...
- Murder conviction reversed for failure to give lesser
Posted July 3, 2008, 6:33 pm by Randall Hodgkinson
Janine Cox won in State v. Scaife, No. 97,183 (Kan. July 3, 2008), getting a new trial in a Wyandotte County premeditated murder case (the KSC affirmed convictions for attempted first-degree murder and aggravated robbery). The prosecution was a "combined" premeditated/felony murder case. The district court wouldn't give a lesser for second-degree because of the felony murder allegation. The district court did note that if the sole charge in the complaint had been premeditated first-degree...
- Involuntary statements
Posted July 3, 2008, 6:01 pm by Randall Hodgkinson
Pantaleon Florez, Jr. won in State v. Karin Morton, No. 97,848 (Kan. July 3, 2008), affirming Judge James Smith's suppression of statements in a Franklin County making a false information prosecution. The KSC affirmed the COA's holding that Ms. Morton was not in custody and therefore there was no Miranda violation. But the KSC went on to analyze what the COA didn't, whether the statements were voluntary: The agent's undisclosed purpose for the interview, Morton's subjective beliefs about the...
- District judge accused of sexual misconduct
Posted July 2, 2008, 9:27 pm by Randall Hodgkinson
Here is a Lawrence Journal-World article reporting that District Judge Frederick Stewart, from Leavenworth County is facing disciplinary charges stemming from alleged sexual misconduct with a member of his staff.
- No true bill
Posted July 2, 2008, 9:08 pm by Randall Hodgkinson
Here is a Wichita Eagle article reporting that the grand jury investigating abortion crimes in Sedgwick County returned no true bill. Remember that a Johnson County grand jury already reached a similar result earlier this year (as blogged about here). I wonder if this will temper the ad hoc grand jury movement we have seen in the last couple of years. Probably not. The number of signatures needed is pretty low and not difficult for special interests to meet.
- IAC in murder case
Posted June 30, 2008, 10:55 am by Randall Hodgkinson
Jean Gilles Phillips and student interns Ashley Epperly and Sarah Pfieffer at the KU Defender Project won in Bledsoe v. Bruce, No. 07-3070-RDR (D. Kan. June 23, 2008), a federal 2254 petition. Mr. Bledsoe's murder conviction was affirmed by the KSC (here) in 2002 and denial of his 1507 motion claiming IAC was affirmed by the KSC (here) in 2007. But Judge Rogers granted a new trial based on ineffective assistance of counsel holding that the KSC's previous rejection of the claim was "objectively...
- New blog about courts in Wichita
Posted June 29, 2008, 4:29 pm by Randall Hodgkinson
At least new to me. Here is a link to What the Judge Ate for Breakfast, a blog by Ron Sylvester, the court beat reporter for the Wichita Eagle. He has several interesting entries on stories happening in Wichita courts. Sylvester has always seemed to be a pretty even-handed reporter, so I will be checking his blog often!
- Pilshaw censured
Posted June 29, 2008, 4:15 pm by Randall Hodgkinson
Here is the judicial discipline decision in In re Pilshaw, No. 100,060 (June 27, 2008), climaxing the disciplinary proceedings against her previously blogged about here and here. The KSC publicly censured Judge Pilshaw for yelling at prospective jurors: The aim of judicial discipline is "the maintenance of the honor and dignity of the judiciary and the proper administration of justice rather than the punishment of the individual." This principle directs the outcome in the respondent's case. The...
- Short list and another vacancy in Topeka
Posted June 25, 2008, 8:59 am by Randall Hodgkinson
Here is Topeka Capital-Journal article reporting on the short list to fill the district court vacancy created by Judge Conkin in Shawnee County. The short list is Dave Debenham, Ruth Graham, and Cheryl Rios Kingfisher. If you have comments about these nominees, let the governor know. The article also notes that the nominating commission will be busy as Judge Dowd is also retiring. So the commission is accepting nominations for that position until July 10. Are there any Shawnee County defense...
- Former ADO applies for district judge
Posted June 25, 2008, 8:55 am by Randall Hodgkinson
Mary Prewitt, who spent a short time in the ADO, is on the list of attorneys applying for the district judge position in the 2d Judicial District. Here is a link to a Lawrence Journal-World article reporting Mary's background and on the other six applicants as well. Here is the court press release on the applicants.
- Not guilty in double murder case
Posted June 25, 2008, 8:47 am by Randall Hodgkinson
Steve Rosel won an acquittal in State v. Hopper, a Sedgwick County double first-degree murder prosecution. Here is coverage in the Topeka Capital-Journal. Here is coverage on What the Judge Ate for Breakfast.
- Juveniles have right to a jury trial
Posted June 20, 2008, 6:17 pm by Randall Hodgkinson
Paul Shipp won in In re L.M., No. 96,197 (Kan. June 20, 2008), reversing a Finney County juvenile prosecution and overruling Findlay v. State, 235 Kan. 462, 681 P.2d 20 (1984), the twenty-four year old precedent holding that juveniles are not entitled to a jury trial. The KSC acknowledged that SCOTUS precedent has held otherwise, but noted that the Kansas Legislature has substiantially abandoned the rehabilitative purpose of the juvenile system underlying that decision: These changes to the...
- Adult sentence can't be consecutive to juvenile sanction
Posted June 19, 2008, 11:06 am by Carl Folsom
Rachel Pickering and Sarah "The Kid" Morrison won in State v. Crawford, No. 98,312 (Kan. App. June 13, 2008), reversing the district court's denial of a motion to correct illegal sentence. Crawford claimed the sentencing court erred in ruling his adult sentences consecutive to his juvenile adjudications. The COA agreed and reversed his sentence. The COA held: This appeal raises the question of whether an adult sentence can be consecutive to a juvenile sanction. This is the first time this issue...
- Public safety stop comes up short [NOT FINAL]
Posted June 16, 2008, 11:22 am by Randall Hodgkinson
Carl Folsom won in State v. McCaddon, No. 96,051 (Kan. App. June 13, 2008), reversing a Saline County DUI conviction. The COA held that the basis for concern when investigating an anonomyous tip regarding a domestic dispute was insufficient to justify a public safety stop: Public safety stops fall under the police's community caretaking function, which expands beyond the police's role in investigating crime. Public safety stops are justified by the mobility of the automobile and the danger to...