United States

State v. Hearnes - Criminal Appeal

The Nebraska Court of Appeals issued an opinion in State v. Hearnes, addressing issues of trial joinder and hearsay evidence in a criminal appeal. The court applied the joinder test to determine whether the trial court properly joined multiple offenses for a single trial and evaluated hearsay evidence under the relevant exceptions to the Rules of Evidence.

Mitchell v. Mitchell - Child Support Modification Appeal

The Nebraska Court of Appeals affirmed the district court's denial of David D. Mitchell Jr.'s motion to modify child support. Mitchell argued that his substantially reduced income following his business bankruptcy warranted a reduction in his child support obligation. The appellate court upheld the district court's finding that Mitchell's gross monthly income of $4,063 plus $400 in food stamps did not constitute a sufficient material change in circumstances to justify modifying or suspending child support obligations.

State v. Britsch - Speedy Trial Rights

The Nebraska Court of Appeals affirmed the district court's order denying Gunnar Britsch's motion for absolute discharge based on statutory speedy trial violations under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 29-1207. The court upheld that 69 days were properly excluded from the 6-month speedy trial period as 'good cause' due to judicial recusal and rescheduling, extending the deadline from June 7 to August 16, 2024. The State successfully demonstrated sufficient excludable time to avoid absolute discharge.

Climer v. Wilson - Custody Modification Appeal

The Nebraska Court of Appeals affirmed the Saunders County District Court's denial of Melanie Climer's complaint to modify custody arrangements and dismissal of her contempt application against Israel Wilson. The appellate court upheld the original custody order under case No. A-25-311, finding no abuse of discretion in the lower court's decision.

Villegas v. Bridges, Inc. - Workers' Compensation Subrogation

The Nebraska Court of Appeals affirmed the district court's allocation of $3,000,000 in third-party settlement proceeds from a wrongful death claim, awarding the workers' compensation insurer Zurich American $27,612.21 for past payments and a $47,891.22 credit for future payments, with $72,387.79 to the estate. The appellate court rejected appellants' claim that the division was not 'fair and equitable' under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 48-118.04.

State v. Swartz - Postconviction Relief Denial

The Nebraska Court of Appeals affirmed the Hall County District Court's denial of Anthoney Swartz's motion for postconviction relief. Swartz claimed ineffective assistance of appellate counsel and lack of jurisdiction due to delayed probation revocation proceedings. The court rejected these arguments, finding the district court had jurisdiction and the claims were procedurally barred.

State v. Tilkins - Criminal Appeal

The Nebraska Court of Appeals affirmed Kevin A. Tilkins, Sr.'s convictions for assault by strangulation (Class IIIA felony), third degree domestic assault (Class I misdemeanor), and two counts of child abuse (Class I misdemeanors). The appellate court rejected Tilkins' challenges to evidence sufficiency and claims of ineffective assistance of counsel. This decision upholds the Buffalo County District Court judgment from case No. A-25-526.

Denaturalization Order for Medical Trade Secret Theft and Wire Fraud

The DOJ announced that a federal judge in the Southern District of California revoked the naturalized U.S. citizenship of Li Chen and Yu Zhou for illegally procuring naturalization through trade secret theft and wire fraud. The couple, former research scientists at Nationwide Children's Hospital, stole exosome isolation trade secrets and received nearly $1.5 million from selling the intellectual property to benefit their own company and another enterprise. Chen was sentenced to 30 months and Zhou to 33 months in prison, with over $2.6 million in restitution ordered jointly.

Secretary of Labor v. Knight Hawk Coal - Interlocutory Appeal Jurisdiction

The D.C. Circuit dismissed the Secretary of Labor's interlocutory appeals in consolidated cases (Nos. 24-1293, 24-1294) involving mine operators Knight Hawk Coal and Crimson Oak Grove Resources, finding it lacked jurisdiction to review nonfinal Commission orders. The court held that the Secretary's attempts to modify citations by removing S&S designations or vacating citations without explanation did not meet the collateral-order doctrine exception to the final-judgment rule.

Secretary of Labor v. Knight Hawk Coal - MSHA Settlement Authority Interlocutory Review

The D.C. Circuit dismissed petitions for review filed by the Secretary of Labor seeking interlocutory review of Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission orders. The court held that nonfinal Commission orders denying the Secretary's motions to settle or modify MSHA citations are not immediately appealable under the collateral-order doctrine. The Secretary must await final decisions before seeking appellate review.