State v. Marslender An eyewitness testified that defendant’s truck passed her just as she was beginning to slow down because of heavy rain. She saw the truck go out of control due to, she thought, overcompensating. In addition to defendant’s 0.12 blood alcohol content, this was sufficient evidence that defendant’s impaired driving was the proximate cause of the accident that killed his passenger.

Tagged with: Criminal Practice Malice other bad acts Prior Convictions proximate cause

State v. Vester Defendant was charged with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, assault by strangulation, assault on a female, and misdemeanor larceny. Even though defense counsel said in his opening statement that defendant didn’t try to set the victim on fire and never tried to choke her, and even though defense counsel admitted in his closing argument that the victim had “gone through something,” defense counsel did not implicitly concede that defendant was guilty of assault on a female and larceny. Defense counsel maintained throughout the trial that the jury should find defendant not guilty of any of the charges. Defendant has failed to show that his attorney rendered ineffective assistance of counsel.

Tagged with: Attorneys Criminal Practice effective assistance

State v. Smith At a gas station, defendant, another passenger, and the driver got out of a car that was playing loud music. The driver was ticketed for a noise ordinance violation, and a drug dog alerted to a controlled substance at the driver’s door. These circumstances did not give police reasonable cause to search defendant’s person.

Tagged with: Criminal Practice first impression search & seizure

Teleguz v. Pearson, Warden A defendant convicted of murder-for-hire is entitled to another chance to show his “actual innocence,” as the 4th Circuit says a trial court erred in its application of the “gateway innocence” test for evaluating defendant’s habeas claims.

Tagged with: Criminal Practice

State v. Avent Although defendant was relying on an alibi defense, the amendment of the murder date in the indictment did not prejudice him. He was still able to present an alibi for the corrected date of the murder; moreover, witness statements and the autopsy gave the correct date, so defendant was not surprised by the amendment of the indictment.

Tagged with: Criminal Practice evidence murder

State v. O’Connor Where the prosecution and the defense presented conflicting testimony as to defendant’s speed and manner of driving and whether defendant and the arresting officer made eye contact before the officer started following defendant, the trial court should have made findings of fact in support of its order granting defendant’s motion to suppress evidence from the traffic stop.

Tagged with: Criminal Practice insufficient findings search & seizure suppression motion traffic stop

State v. Joe It is the law of this case that the arresting officer lacked probable cause to arrest defendant. Officers discovered a bag of cocaine near where defendant was found, and they seized it only after defendant was unlawfully arrested and handcuffed. Because defendant’s abandonment of the contraband was the product of his illegal arrest, it cannot be said to have been voluntarily abandoned. Accordingly, the cocaine was obtained as the result of unlawful police conduct, and the trial court properly suppressed it.

Tagged with: Cocaine Possession Criminal Practice search & seizure

State v. Anderson When defendant didn’t show up for the second day of his trial, he had the burden of explaining his absence. He attempted to explain his absence by offering the following evidence: (1) a phone call from Stacie Wilson, a person who failed to provide any information as to who she was or what hospital defendant was in and (2) a note from Presbyterian Hospital indicating that defendant had been treated there at some point, but which lacked any indication of the date or time of treatment. This evidence was insufficient to satisfy defendant’s burden to explain his absence. Accordingly, defendant waived his right to confrontation.

Tagged with: Assault confrontation right Constitutional Criminal Practice restitution

State v. Martin Where defendant restrained the victim solely for the purpose of committing sexual assaults and strangulation, the restraint operated as an inherent part of the sexual offenses and the strangulation and cannot satisfy the restraint element of kidnapping.

Tagged with: Constitutional credibility Criminal Practice Double Jeopardy expert witness

State v. Cox In a car with a driver and three passengers, defendant was seated in the front passenger seat. The driver ran when police arrived, and a gun was found 10 or 12 feet from the car, along the driver’s flight path. Defendant’s mere statement that he owned the gun (after police threatened to charge all three passengers – including defendant’s younger brother – with possession) was insufficient to support the charge of possession of a firearm by a felon.

Tagged with: confession Constructive Possession Criminal Practice marijuana possession Weapon Possession