North Dakota Supreme Court Decisions 2014
Date: December 30, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 239
Docket Number: 20140017
Justia Opinion Summary: J.G.S. was a 90-year-old retired attorney and owned a number of multi-family rental properties. In 2008, J.G.S. suffered a stroke. In 2013, the Petitioners in this proceeding, J.G.S.'s four children, C.C., C.S., J.F.S.,…
Date: December 22, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 238
Docket Number: 20140124
Justia Opinion Summary: Craig and Julie Nelson appealed a judgment quieting title in certain real property in Harry and Linda Chornuk and awarding the Chornuks damages for conversion, and from an amended judgment modifying the damage award. In…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 227
Docket Number: 20130349
Justia Opinion Summary: SmartLease USA, LLC was a limited liability company with three principals, Kent Guthrie, Tony Marshall, and Steve Furst, which described itself in a business proposal as an entity seeking "to capitalize on the demand for…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 221
Docket Number: 20130392
Justia Opinion Summary: Glenvin Albrecht sued Sharleen Albrecht for a divorce in February 2010, after nearly 50 years of marriage. After an evidentiary hearing in October 2012, a "judgment" was filed on October 19, 2012, "order[ing],…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 234
Docket Number: 20140044
Justia Opinion Summary: Carleen and Paul McCarthy appealed their divorce judgment distributing the parties' marital property and awarding permanent spousal support. Carleen argued on appeal that the district court's property distribution to…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 222
Docket Number: 20140063
Justia Opinion Summary: Tina George petitioned the district court for a disorderly conduct restraining order against her ex-husband Jess George, alleging he had contacted her repeatedly following the parties' separation and subsequent divorce…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 237
Docket Number: 20140074
Justia Opinion Summary: Margaret Pedro was domiciled in Nevada and died in 1997. In March 1999, one of Pedro's children, Jack Scheeler, filed an application in the North Dakota district court, seeking informal probate of Margaret Pedro's will…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 229
Docket Number: 20140086
Justia Opinion Summary: Gardell Frey married Elizabeth Wonser (previously Frey) in 2003 and the parties divorced in 2008. Based on a settlement agreement between the parties, Wonser was awarded primary residential responsibility of the parties'…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 226
Docket Number: 20140090
Justia Opinion Summary: Stephan Podrygula and Psychological Services, P.C. (collectively "Podrygula") appealed a district court order dismissing their complaint against Angela and William Bray for fraud and negligent infliction of emotional…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 230
Docket Number: 20140093
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant-appellant Derald Ross, Jr. was tried by jury and convicted on three counts of burglary. At the final dispositional conference before trial, Horn moved to dismiss the case arguing the State had violated a…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 228
Docket Number: 20140141
Justia Opinion Summary: In January 2013, while hunting coyotes in Logan County, defendant-appellant Penn Brandborg and a companion entered onto property owned by Joyce Haag and operated by her son, Keith Haag. To enter the property, Brandborg…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 231
Docket Number: 20140151
Justia Opinion Summary: Dennis and Charlene Deckert appealed the grant of summary judgment dismissing their action for a declaratory judgment and specific performance of an option to purchase certain Burleigh County real property and quieting…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 232
Docket Number: 20140161
Justia Opinion Summary: After he was found lying in the backseat of a vehicle parked at a rest area outside of Bismarck, Nathaniel Deeth was arrested for being in actual physical control of a motor vehicle while under the influence of…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 225
Docket Number: 20140164
Justia Opinion Summary: Pro se appellant Cody Schmitt appealed a district court's eviction order, arguing service of an amended notice of eviction was insufficient. Schmitt and Lisa Stahlberg resided in a mobile home located on property owned…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 223
Docket Numbers: 20140166, 20140167, 20140168, 20140169, 20140170
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2013, the State petitioned for termination of R.P. and J.P.'s guardianship of their grandchildren, P.T., M.T., A.M.T., R.T., and S.M., alleging the children were deprived, the children had been in foster care for 450…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 224
Docket Number: 20140179
Justia Opinion Summary: James Nagel appealed his conviction entered on a conditional plea of guilty to driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor. He reserved his right to appeal the district court's denial of his motion to suppress…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 235
Docket Number: 20140182
Justia Opinion Summary: Dustin Lerud and Megan Grossman had a child together. As part of the original judgment, Lerud was required to pay child support based on imputation of his income at the minimum wage. Grossman requested a review of…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 236
Docket Number: 20140193
Justia Opinion Summary: Across Big Sky Flow Testing, LLC appealed a district court judgment affirming an administrative law judge's award of benefits in the death of Dustin Bergsing. Dustin Bergsing, an employee of Big Sky, was stationed at an…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 233
Docket Number: 20140194
Justia Opinion Summary: Paul Sorum appealed a district court order denying his January 2014, petition for a writ of mandamus. The petition requested an order to compel Governor Jack Dalrymple and Secretary of State Al Jaeger to execute and…
Date: December 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 212
Docket Numbers: 20140374, 20140375, 20140376
Date: November 20, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 210
Docket Number: 20140212
Date: November 12, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 209
Docket Numbers: 20140067, 20140070, 20140071
Justia Opinion Summary: Dale Yost appealed judgment entered on an Alford plea to five counts of gross sexual imposition. Upon review, the Supreme Court concluded the record did not establish Yost knowingly and intelligently waived his right to…
Date: November 12, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 208
Docket Number: 20140084
Justia Opinion Summary: Jerry Harvey appealed a district court judgment granting a divorce to Christine Rasmussen Harvey, distributing the parties' marital estate, awarding her primary residential responsibility of the parties' three minor…
Date: November 12, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 207
Docket Number: 20140087
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant-appellant Sam Leppert appealed a district court judgment finding him guilty of driving without liability insurance. Because a noncriminal traffic case may not be appealed to the Supreme Court, Leppert's appeal…
Date: November 5, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 202
Docket Number: 20140079
Justia Opinion Summary: In March 2013, the State charged Rapheal Murphy with delivery of cocaine within 1,000 feet of a school, a class AA felony, and tampering with physical evidence, a class C felony. The information also stated Murphy had…
Date: October 31, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 200
Docket Number: 20130245
Justia Opinion Summary: Northstar Founders, LLC is a North Dakota company which was seeking financing to build a canola processing plant near Hallock, Minnesota. Northstar worked with several companies in an effort to raise funds for the…
Date: October 31, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 201
Docket Number: 20140110
Justia Opinion Summary: Patricia Capps and others appealed, and Colleen Weflen and others cross-appealed a judgment quieting title to certain Mountrail County mineral interests in the Capps and the heirs of Ruth Nelson's estate. Because the…
Date: October 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 194
Docket Number: 20140034
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2007, G.L.D. was committed to the custody of the Department of Human Services for treatment as a sexually dangerous individual and, in 2011, the North Dakota Supreme Court affirmed an order denying his petition for…
Date: October 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 199
Docket Number: 20140037
Justia Opinion Summary: Cheryl Wilson appealed a district court judgment granting her a divorce from Brian Wilson, distributing the parties' marital estate, and ordering Brian Wilson pay child support. Upon review of the matter, the Supreme…
Date: October 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 193
Docket Number: 20140048
Justia Opinion Summary: Darrius Patterson appealed after a jury found him guilty of delivery of cocaine within 1000 feet of a school. Patterson argued the district court should have declared a mistrial because testimony given by a confidential…
Date: October 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 192
Docket Number: 20140066
Justia Opinion Summary: Desert Partners IV, L.P., and Family Tree Corporation ("Desert Partners") sued to quiet title to certain mineral interests in McKenzie County to Desert Partners. Numerous parties were included in the action.…
Date: October 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 195
Docket Number: 20140129
Justia Opinion Summary: Jeffrey Fetch appealed the judgment entered on a conditional plea of guilty to driving under the influence of intoxicating liquor, reserving his right to appeal the district court's denial of his motion to suppress…
Date: October 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 188
Docket Number: 20140132
Date: October 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 196
Docket Numbers: 20140145, 20140146
Justia Opinion Summary: M.U. is the mother of D.H., born in 1998, and J.A.H., born in 2001. On September 6, 2013, M.U. sought assistance from Burleigh County Social Services due to concerns she was being stalked. Later the same day, a juvenile…
Date: October 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 198
Docket Number: 20140153
Justia Opinion Summary: Robert Schneider appealed the district court's order denying Schneider's motion to suppress evidence following a conditional guilty plea to possession of marijuana by a driver and possession of drug paraphernalia.…
Date: October 21, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 184
Docket Numbers: 20140310, 20140352
Date: September 29, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 182
Docket Number: 20140021
Justia Opinion Summary: Michael Crocker appealed the grant of summary judgment that dismissed his personal injury claim against Werner Enterprises, Inc. Crocker argued Werner was vicariously liable for Alexander Morales-Santana's negligent…
Date: September 26, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 181
Docket Number: 20140032
Justia Opinion Summary: Rita Sue Rasnic, (f/k/a Johnson) appealed the grant of summary judgment quieting title to disputed mineral interests in McKenzie County to Norris and Beverly Hildre. Rasnic argues she was entitled to the disputed mineral…
Date: September 23, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 179
Docket Number: 20130219
Justia Opinion Summary: Debra Ganske, Wesley Borgen, Michael Borgen, Sue Evans, and Linda McCoy ("the Borgens") appealed a district court summary judgment quieting title in certain oil and gas leases in Golden Eye Resources, LLC and dismissing…
Date: September 23, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 180
Docket Number: 20130411
Justia Opinion Summary: On October 13, 2010, Fargo law enforcement officers conducted a controlled drug buy in which they had a confidential informant arrange to buy methamphetamine from M.B., an unwitting go-between. M.B. was given $500 for…
Date: September 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 176
Docket Number: 20140131
Date: September 2, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 175
Docket Number: 20140184
Justia Opinion Summary: Western Horizons sued Dakota Travel Nurse, a North Dakota corporation that contracts with healthcare facilities to provide licensed nursing staff, alleging Western Horizons and Dakota Travel Nurse entered a 2008 contract…
Date: August 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 170
Docket Number: 20130372
Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Faith Krueger appealed and Grand Forks County cross-appealed a judgment in favor of the County in Krueger's action for breach of fiduciary duty, negligence, trespass to chattel, conversion,…
Date: August 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 169
Docket Number: 20130425
Justia Opinion Summary: Robert Huss appealed a domestic violence protection order prohibiting him from contacting S.L.W. (a minor) for a period of two years. In November 2013, S.L.W.'s mother petitioned the district court for a domestic…
Date: August 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 173
Docket Number: 20140009
Justia Opinion Summary: Andrew Olsen appealed a trial court order denying his application for post-conviction relief. After review, the Supreme Court concluded that as a matter of law, the failure of Olsen's attorney to raise an issue of first…
Date: August 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 171
Docket Number: 20140012
Justia Opinion Summary: Mark Rath appealed a district court order that found him in contempt of court for violating provisions of his divorce judgment. Mark also argued the trial court erred in refusing to find Kayla Rath in contempt of court,…
Date: August 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 174
Docket Number: 20140036
Justia Opinion Summary: Karmen Lindsey appealed a district court order summarily dismissing her application for post-conviction relief from a conviction entered after her 2007 guilty plea to a charge of murder. After review, the Supreme Court…
Date: August 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 168
Docket Numbers: 20140080, 20140081
Date: August 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 172
Docket Number: 20140206
Justia Opinion Summary: S.W.S. appealed a juvenile court order terminating his parental rights to T.R.C. S.W.S. is the father and C.M.C. is the mother of T.R.C., who was born in 2011. The child was taken into custody of Traill County Social…
Date: August 6, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 167
Docket Numbers: 20140205, 20140234, 20140235
Date: July 31, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 164
Docket Number: 20130311
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant-appellant Justin Yarbro appealed his conviction after a jury found him guilty of continuous sexual abuse of a child and the district court's order denying his motion for a new trial. Upon review, the Supreme…
Date: July 31, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 165
Docket Number: 20130374
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant-appellant Tamri Stewart appealed her conviction following a conditional plea of guilty to class C felony abuse or neglect of a child, reserving the right to challenge the district court's denial of her motion…
Date: July 31, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 166
Docket Number: 20140001
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant-appellant Chad Klein appealed a district court order denying his motion to correct his sentence. The Supreme Court, after review, concluded that the district court acted within the limits prescribed by statute…
Date: July 31, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 163
Docket Number: 20140015
Justia Opinion Summary: Kathy Inwards was injured while employed as an assembler by Bobcat. WSI accepted liability for her claim and awarded Inwards vocational rehabilitation benefits to assist her in returning to work. In early June 2011, WSI…
Date: July 31, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 160
Docket Number: 20140020
Justia Opinion Summary: In Spring 2008, Williams Company Construction, Inc. entered into a construction contract to remodel the Friendly Smiles Cosmetic Dentistry Office owned by Dr. Brenda Barfield. Dr. Barfield previously leased the building…
Date: July 31, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 161
Docket Number: 20140047
Justia Opinion Summary: In July 2013, a Bismarck Police Officer arrested Appellant Ducote Haynes for being in actual physical control of a motor vehicle while under the influence of intoxicating liquor. The police transported Haynes to jail,…
Date: July 31, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 162
Docket Number: 20140083
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant-appellant Luke Gatlin appealed his conviction following a conditional plea of guilty to possession of drug paraphernalia. Because the Supreme Court held Gatlin could not assert a violation of a third party's…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 143
Docket Number: 20130161
Justia Opinion Summary: Carolyn Vizenor and Leonard Vizenor were married and lived most of their lives together in Minnesota. Ragna Mesling, a widow and Carolyn Vizenor's mother, owned real estate outside of New England, in Hettinger County.…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 146
Docket Number: 20130222
Justia Opinion Summary: John and Lori Finstad owned 80 acres of a section of land in Ransom County and leased 240 adjacent acres in the same section from Willis and Doris Olson. The Ranson-Sargent Water Users District was considering this tract…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 149
Docket Number: 20130282
Justia Opinion Summary: Jerry Shae appealed a district court order for amended judgment on Colette Shae's motion to modify child support obligations, requiring Jerry to pay $39,634.82 per month in child support, medical expenses for his…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 156
Docket Number: 20130332
Justia Opinion Summary: Three men dressed in face masks, gloves and dark clothing forcibly broke into a Grand Forks home in the early morning. The occupants, Carmen and Sherman Jones, were watching television at the time; a security system…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 157
Docket Number: 20130350
Justia Opinion Summary: Before the 2013-2014 school year, the Dickinson Education Association and the Dickinson Public School District conducted negotiations and developed and agreed upon a series of negotiated master agreements that contained…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 145
Docket Number: 20130394
Justia Opinion Summary: Brian Nieuwenhuis appealed an amended divorce judgment awarding Lora Nieuwenhuis attorney's fees and determining her obligation to help with mortgage payments is satisfied. The Supreme Court reversed and remanded,…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 144
Docket Number: 20130395
Justia Opinion Summary: Gerald Middleton was found guilty by a jury of continuous sexual abuse of a child, a class AA felony, and corruption of a minor, a class C felony. After the trial, attorney Steven Light, now deceased, was substituted as…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 155
Docket Number: 20130397
Justia Opinion Summary: Jason Gullickson appealed a district court order denying his application for postconviction relief after he pled guilty to manufacturing methamphetamine (second offense), possession of methamphetamine with intent to…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 152
Docket Number: 20130398
Justia Opinion Summary: Joseph Smith appealed his conviction entered on a conditional plea of guilty for driving under the influence of an intoxicating liquor. Smith argued on appeal to the Supreme Court that the district court erred in denying…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 153
Docket Number: 20140004
Justia Opinion Summary: On May 20, 2013, a Stark County Sheriff's Deputy stopped Defendant Lee Rahier's vehicle and, subsequently, arrested him for carrying a concealed weapon, hindering law enforcement, and disorderly conduct. Rahier moved to…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 148
Docket Number: 20140014
Justia Opinion Summary: Rick Rustad appealed and Svetlana Rustad cross-appealed an amended judgment awarding her primary residential responsibility for the parties' minor child. Upon review, the Supreme Court affirmed, concluding the district…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 150
Docket Number: 20140016
Justia Opinion Summary: Willard and Christi Pankonin owned real property in Logan County, which was mortgaged with Dakota Heritage Bank. The Bank brought a foreclosure action and a judgment was entered. Before the Pankonins' redemption period…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 151
Docket Number: 20140018
Justia Opinion Summary: Nicholas Baatz was convicted by a jury of gross sexual imposition in 2009 and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. In 2010 Baatz filed an application for postconviction relief alleging he was denied effective assistance…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 147
Docket Number: 20140019
Justia Opinion Summary: Seventy-year-old James Higginbotham was employed by Industrial Contractors, Inc. ("ICI") as a welder and pipefitter in May 2010 when he sustained an injury to his left rotator cuff. The medical records demonstrated that…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 154
Docket Number: 20140045
Justia Opinion Summary: On September 1, 2013, at approximately 12:39 a.m., a Morton county deputy was traveling east when he observed a vehicle traveling west on the same road accelerate past him at a high rate of speed. The car was pulled…
Date: July 17, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 158
Docket Number: 20140082
Justia Opinion Summary: Adam Frank appealed a district court judgment affirming a Department of Transportation hearing officer's decision suspending Frank's driving privileges for driving under the influence of alcohol. Upon review of the…
Date: June 27, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 136
Docket Number: 20140040
Justia Opinion Summary: Joshua Cook appealed his conviction entered upon a conditional guilty plea to six counts of possession of drugs and one count of possession of drug paraphernalia after the district court denied his motion to suppress…
Date: June 26, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 135
Docket Number: 20130365
Justia Opinion Summary: Timothy Betz appealed an amended judgment awarding the trustees of the Emelia Hirsch Trust $5,000 plus interest for attorney fees and costs, and an order denying his post-judgment objection to costs and his request for a…
Date: June 24, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 130
Docket Number: 20130236
Justia Opinion Summary: Michael Cone appealed after a jury found him guilty of aggravated assault. In July 2012, the State charged Cone with aggravated assault and with felonious restraint, alleging he punched the complainant in the face and…
Date: June 24, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 132
Docket Number: 20130293
Justia Opinion Summary: Robbie Mairs appealed an amended judgment modifying residential responsibility and awarding Holly Mairs (now Aker) primary residential responsibility of the parties' two children. Upon review, the Supreme Court concluded…
Date: June 24, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 128
Docket Number: 20130297
Justia Opinion Summary: American General Contractors, Inc. ("AGC"), appealed a judgment assessing liability and awarding damages and interest for the cost of delays in the construction of the Williams County Law Enforcement Center in Williston.…
Date: June 24, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 119
Docket Number: 20130300
Justia Opinion Summary: Ronald McCoy appealed a district court judgment affirming a Department of Transportation decision suspending his driving privileges for 180 days. The Supreme Court affirmed because McCoy consented to take a chemical…
Date: June 24, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 129
Docket Number: 20130338
Justia Opinion Summary: Joseph Herrman appealed a district court judgment affirming a North Dakota Department of Transportation decision revoking his driving privileges for one year. Herrman was arrested for driving while intoxicated. The…
Date: June 24, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 124
Docket Number: 20130339
Justia Opinion Summary: Jennifer Daniels appealed a district court judgment and order deferring imposition of sentence entered following Daniels' conditional plea of guilty to Possession of Alprazolam and Possession of Carisoprodol, both class…
Date: June 24, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 122
Docket Number: 20130347
Justia Opinion Summary: Robert Devine appealed a fifth amended judgment reducing the amount of child support his ex-wife, Rebekah Hennessee, was required to pay each month. Hennessee was medically discharged from the Air Force in April 2013,…
Date: June 24, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 126
Docket Number: 20130348
Justia Opinion Summary: Robert Hale, individually and on behalf of the State of North Dakota, and Susan Hale appealed a summary judgment dismissing their public nuisance claim against Ward County and the City of Minot. The Hales had a house on…
Date: June 24, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 127
Docket Number: 20130353
Justia Opinion Summary: David Meier appealed an amended divorce judgment awarding Gayla Meier a share of his Tier II railroad retirement benefits. Upon review, the Supreme Court concluded the district court abused its discretion in granting…
Date: June 24, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 134
Docket Number: 20130357
Justia Opinion Summary: Ronald Rogers Jr. appealed district court judgment after he conditionally pled guilty to murder and willful disturbance of a dead body. The Supreme Court affirmed, concluding Rogers was not in police custody when he…
Date: June 24, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 133
Docket Number: 20130373
Justia Opinion Summary: Wendell Lund appealed a memorandum opinion and order entered after a court trial dismissed his complaint for breach of an implied contract against his parents, Orville and Betty Lund. In March 2011, the Supreme Court…
Date: June 24, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 123
Docket Number: 20130375
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendants Citation Oil & Gas Corp., Petro-Hunt LLC, and other working interest owners appealed a district court summary judgment quieting title to an oil and gas lease in Greggory Tank. In 1982, George and Phyllis Tank…
Date: June 24, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 125
Docket Number: 20130406
Justia Opinion Summary: Rodney Chisholm appealed a district court order dismissing his application for post-conviction relief. Chisholm argued the court erred in summarily dismissing his application on its own motion without providing him with…
Date: June 24, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 131
Docket Number: 20140043
Justia Opinion Summary: Derek Pokrzywinski appeals the district court judgment affirming a North Dakota Department of Transportation hearing officer's decision suspending his driving privileges for three years. Pokrzywinski was in a single…
Date: June 4, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 111
Docket Number: 20130317
Justia Opinion Summary: Leon Francis appealed a domestic violence protection order prohibiting contact with his wife, Nichole Francis, granting Nichole temporary custody of their minor children and restricting him to supervised visitation with…
Date: June 2, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 110
Docket Numbers: 20140053, 20140062
Date: May 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 101
Docket Number: 20130074
Justia Opinion Summary: Omar Mohamed Kalmio appealed after a jury found him guilty of four counts of class AA felony murder after a jury trial. He argued the judgments should have been reversed because the district court abused its discretion…
Date: May 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 103
Docket Number: 20130295
Justia Opinion Summary: Troy Lehman appealed a district court order dismissing his application for post-conviction relief. In 2009, a jury found Lehman guilty of kidnapping and terrorizing. Lehman was sentenced to ten years in the custody of…
Date: May 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 104
Docket Number: 20130326
Justia Opinion Summary: Barry Roe appealed after a jury found him guilty of two counts of gross sexual imposition. The Supreme Court affirmed, concluding the district court did not err in admitting child hearsay statements as part of a…
Date: May 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 106
Docket Number: 20130351
Justia Opinion Summary: Lyn Karjalainen (formerly Schroeder) appealed a district court order denying her motion to amend the amended divorce judgment granting Travis Schroeder primary residential responsibility of their children. Karjalainen…
Date: May 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 102
Docket Number: 20130364
Justia Opinion Summary: Kurt Datz appealed an amended judgment awarding primary residential responsibility to Helen Dosch; an order denying his motion to vacate, motion to strike, and demand for recusal; and a money judgment awarding attorney's…
Date: May 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 107
Docket Number: 20130368
Justia Opinion Summary: Terrance Schlieve appealed a divorce judgment awarding primary residential responsibility of the children to Julie Schlieve, the mother. The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part, concluding the district…
Date: May 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 105
Docket Number: 20130413
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2011, defendant S.G.'s vehicle collided with a motorcycle driven by John Allmer. S.G. was fifteen years old at the time. The parties stipulated Allmer suffered significant injuries, had medical expenses in excess of…
Date: May 12, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 97
Docket Number: 20130264
Justia Opinion Summary: Scott's Electric, Inc. was an electrical contracting business providing commercial, residential, industrial and farm services. Scott's employed Patrick Anderson, Adam Barton, Greg Boumont, Jason Richter, Michael Rick,…
Date: May 8, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 95
Docket Numbers: 20130334, 20130337
Justia Opinion Summary: Rebecca Larson appealed after she conditionally pled guilty to possession of marijuana with intent to deliver and possession of drug paraphernalia. Brian Kuruc appealed a criminal judgment for possession of marijuana…
Date: May 6, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 94
Docket Number: 20130325
Justia Opinion Summary: Tharaldson Ethanol Plant I, LLC and Tharaldson Financial Group, Inc. appealed a judgment and amended judgment ordering Tharaldson Financial to pay VEI Global, Inc., $1,150,000 plus interest, and an order granting…
Date: May 2, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 92
Docket Number: 20130232
Justia Opinion Summary: Allen Kraft and Jim Kost operated a custom combining partnership. They ceased doing business as a partnership in early 2003, but continued to share equipment and work in 2003 and 2004. In 2008, Kost sued Kraft to…
Date: May 2, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 93
Docket Number: 20130240
Justia Opinion Summary: Roger Frith appealed a district court judgment affirming an order of Workforce Safety and Insurance ("WSI") denying him medical benefits. In September 2010, Frith filed a claim for a work injury, alleging that on August…
Date: May 1, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 91
Docket Number: 20130363
Justia Opinion Summary: Rodney Simeon Scheett, Jr., appealed his conviction after a jury found him guilty of possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver and possession of drug paraphernalia. He challenged the district court's denial of…
Date: April 29, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 90
Docket Number: 20130149
Justia Opinion Summary: Alonna Norberg appealed a district court judgment granting her a divorce from Jon Norberg, distributing the parties' marital estate, awarding Jon Norberg primary residential responsibility of the parties' three minor…
Date: April 29, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 88
Docket Number: 20130274
Justia Opinion Summary: Ray Corman appealed a district court memorandum decision and order concluding he was a sexually dangerous individual and committed him to the care, custody and control of the executive director of the North Dakota…
Date: April 29, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 82
Docket Number: 20130280
Justia Opinion Summary: K.G., the father of minor child G.K.G., appealed a district court order denying his motion to vacate an order terminating his parental rights and refusing to vacate an order for ongoing child support. Concluding the…
Date: April 29, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 85
Docket Number: 20130281
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant Mark Bosworth appeals from an order evicting him from land. In August 2013, Vlad Gasic commenced this action against several defendants, including Bosworth, Blake Bosworth, Catherine Fletcher, Matthew…
Date: April 29, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 83
Docket Number: 20130283
Justia Opinion Summary: Amanda Kulbacki appealed a district court judgment awarding her a divorce from Nicholas Michael and granting Michael's mother grandparent visitation. Kulbacki argued: (1) the district court erred in awarding grandparent…
Date: April 29, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 89
Docket Number: 20130291
Justia Opinion Summary: Respondent-appellant Maurice Thill appealed a district court order denying his petition for discharge from civil commitment as a sexually dangerous individual. The Supreme Court affirmed, concluding the district court…
Date: April 29, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 81
Docket Number: 20130292
Justia Opinion Summary: Workforce Safety and Insurance appealed a district court judgment affirming an administrative law judge's order finding William Snook and other similarly situated welders were independent contractors. The Supreme Court…
Date: April 29, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 87
Docket Number: 20130321
Justia Opinion Summary: The paternal grandparents of the three minor children, born in 1996, 2008, and 2010, sued the children's parents for grandparent visitation, alleging visitation was in the best interests of the minor children and would…
Date: April 29, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 79
Docket Number: 20130391
Justia Opinion Summary: Dennis Whedbee appealed a district court judgment affirming Workforce Safety and Insurance's ("WSI") binding dispute resolution denying Whedbee's request for a myoelectric prosthesis and approving a body-powered…
Date: April 29, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 80
Docket Number: 20130407
Justia Opinion Summary: Roland Riemers appealed a district court judgment dismissing his claims for unpaid rent, late fees, property damage, and punitive damages. Riemers leased a rental property he owned to Heidee Hill, who lived in the home…
Date: April 29, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 84
Docket Number: 20130419
Justia Opinion Summary: John Murphy appeaed a judgment that summarily dismissed his application for postconviction relief. Murphy argued that he should have received postconviction relief because he received ineffective assistance of counsel…
Date: April 9, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 74
Docket Number: 20130084
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2004, Robert and Cheri Knorr bought a lot and built a home on Lake Audubon. They owned the lake home debt free. When the national real estate market soured in the late 2000s, the Knorrs had to mortgage the lake…
Date: April 8, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 71
Docket Number: 20130279
Justia Opinion Summary: Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem, on behalf of the State, appealed, and the National Audubon Society cross-appealed from a district court judgment dismissing the Attorney General's corporate farming enforcement action…
Date: April 8, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 70
Docket Number: 20130296
Justia Opinion Summary: Christopher Lind appealed an amended judgment granting his motion to modify child support, denying his motion to modify spousal support, and denying his motion to find Karla Lind, his former wife, in contempt. Upon…
Date: April 8, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 72
Docket Number: 20130342
Justia Opinion Summary: John and Lorie Finstad appealed the grant of summary judgment that declared James and Wendy Gord owners of farmland in Ransom County. Upon review of the arguments on appeal, the Supreme Court concluded a quitclaim deed…
Date: April 7, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 69
Docket Number: 20130241
Justia Opinion Summary: Nicholas Law appealed a district court judgment awarding himself and Danielle Whittet joint residential responsibility for their minor child. Upon review of the facts and circumstances of this case, the Supreme Court…
Date: April 3, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 57
Docket Number: 20130176
Justia Opinion Summary: Randy Holkesvig appealed district court orders denying him leave of court to file post-judgment motions, denying his motion to vacate or void judgment, and ordering the Grand Forks County Clerk of Court not to accept any…
Date: April 3, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 64
Docket Number: 20130181
Justia Opinion Summary: The surviving children of Maurice Wicklund appealed an order granting Betty Wicklund's petition for an elective share, personal representative fees, attorney fees, and funeral and last illness expenses from Maurice…
Date: April 3, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 56
Docket Number: 20130200
Justia Opinion Summary: John Lervold appealed a district court order denying his motion to modify primary residential responsibility from Simone Regan to himself. Upon review of the specific facts of this case, the Supreme Court concluded the…
Date: April 3, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 66
Docket Number: 20130217
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants Dean Olsen, Susan ("Sue") Olsen, Bobby Olsen, Clee Raye Olsen, and Marion Bergquist appealed a district court judgment invalidating transfers of money and real property from Clarence Erickson to the appellants…
Date: April 3, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 68
Docket Number: 20130276
Justia Opinion Summary: Jean Topolski appeals from an amended judgment granting Thomas Topolski primary residential responsibility over the couple's minor child. Finding no abuse of discretion, the Supreme Court affirmed the district court…
Date: April 3, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 61
Docket Number: 20130284
Justia Opinion Summary: Kermit Anderson, Jr., and Kevin Kabella appealed a judgment dismissing Anderson's action to evict Nick Lyons from agricultural land owned by Kabella and from a post-judgment order denying a motion by Anderson and Kabella…
Date: April 3, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 65
Docket Number: 20130290
Justia Opinion Summary: Todd Zeller appealed his conviction after he conditionally pled guilty to possession of methamphetamine with intent to manufacture or deliver, and possession of marijuana with intent to manufacture or deliver. Upon…
Date: April 3, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 60
Docket Number: 20130302
Justia Opinion Summary: A Job Service claims deputy issued an initial determination that Kenneth Risovi misrepresented facts in order to obtain unemployment benefits, which he was not eligible to receive. Job Service disqualified Risovi from…
Date: April 3, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 62
Docket Numbers: 20130303, 20130306
Date: April 3, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 63
Docket Number: 20130323
Justia Opinion Summary: Robert Hoff appealed a district court order denying his petition for discharge from civil commitment as a sexually dangerous individual. The district court found by clear and convincing evidence Hoff remained a sexually…
Date: April 3, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 67
Docket Number: 20130370
Justia Opinion Summary: Frederick Skoda appealed the grant of summary judgment foreclosing the mortgage held by JPMorgan Chase Bank. The mortgage included provisions for the payment of principal and interest as well as the payment in escrow for…
Date: March 20, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 53
Docket Number: 20130223
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff-appellant Fred Hector appealed the grant of summary judgment that dismissed his action against the City of Fargo for claims involving special assessments against his land. He argued the district court erred in…
Date: March 14, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 51
Docket Number: 20130100
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff-appellant Erling "Curly" Haugland appealed the grant of summary judgment that dismissed his action against the City of Bismarck for declaratory relief involving Bismarck's implementation of an urban renewal…
Date: March 14, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 52
Docket Numbers: 20130250, 20130387
Date: March 14, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 50
Docket Number: 20130328
Justia Opinion Summary: Respondent Wickham Corwin, judge in the East Central Judicial District, objected to the Judicial Conduct Commission's findings that he violated provisions of the Code of Judicial Conduct and its recommendation that he be…
Date: March 11, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 42
Docket Number: 20130180
Justia Opinion Summary: Ernest Coppage appealed a district court order that denied him post-conviction relief after a jury convicted him of attempted murder. In 2006, the State charged Coppage with attempted murder. Before trial, Coppage moved…
Date: March 11, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 41
Docket Number: 20130226
Justia Opinion Summary: Mark Osier appealed a district court order denying his application for post-conviction relief. In 1994, Osier was charged with multiple counts of gross sexual imposition ("GSI") involving a minor under the age of 15 for…
Date: March 11, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 46
Docket Number: 20130265
Justia Opinion Summary: Christopher Vandermeer appealed after a jury found him guilty of gross sexual imposition with a person less than fifteen years old. The Supreme Court affirmed, concluding the district court did not abuse its discretion…
Date: March 11, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 45
Docket Number: 20130301
Justia Opinion Summary: Sheena Leno (Mittleider) appealed a district court order that denied her expedited motion to reopen the record, and a judgment that awarded Adam Vandal primary residential responsibility of the parties' minor child, L.V.…
Date: March 11, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 47
Docket Number: 20130310
Justia Opinion Summary: The Department of Transportation appealed a district court judgment that reversed the decision of a hearing officer that suspended the driving privileges of petitioner Scott Fossum. Upon review of the circumstances of…
Date: March 11, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 48
Docket Number: 20130322
Justia Opinion Summary: Joseph Daniel Potratz appeals the district court's judgment affirming the administrative hearing officer's decision suspending his driving privileges. A Burleigh County Deputy Sheriff arrested Potratz for driving under…
Date: March 11, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 49
Docket Number: 20130335
Justia Opinion Summary: Ricky James Rodriguez appealed the district court's denial of his petition for writ of mandamus. The Supreme Court did not reach the merits of Rodriguez's argument because the Court concluded the issue on appeal was…
Date: February 21, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 40
Docket Number: 20130162
Justia Opinion Summary: Monica Clark, as the personal representative of the estate of Lester Jasmanka, appealed a district court order denying her motion to vacate a 1990 default judgment quieting title to certain mineral interests in Jack and…
Date: February 20, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 39
Docket Number: 20130091
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2010, Mary Gwyther was in a multi-vehicle accident while driving a pickup she co-owned with her mother, Peggy Gwyther, who died in the accident. The claimants allegedly suffered injuries and property damage as a…
Date: February 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 38
Docket Number: 20130182
Justia Opinion Summary: The Zavadils alleged they loaned Jon and Hollie Rud $32,000 under an April 2008 verbal agreement. The loan was to be repaid when the Ruds sold their home or within six months. When the Ruds failed to repay the loan, the…
Date: February 18, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 37
Docket Number: 20130202
Justia Opinion Summary: Balvitsch and Weisgram sued Tollefson for breach of contract, conversion, unjust enrichment, and other claims. Balvitsch and Weisgram moved to hold Tollefson in contempt, alleging Tollefson failed to obey a February 8,…
Date: February 13, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 29
Docket Number: 20130126
Justia Opinion Summary: James Huston appealed an order denying his petition to remove Wilma Russell as personal representative of Virgil Huston's estate and from an order denying Russell's petition to determine Virgil Huston's heirs. The…
Date: February 13, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 31
Docket Number: 20130155
Justia Opinion Summary: Sandy Mangelsen appealed a district court order finding he was a sexually dangerous individual and committed him to the care, custody, and control of the Executive Director of the Department of Human Services. Upon…
Date: February 13, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 26
Docket Number: 20130166
Justia Opinion Summary: Workforce Safety and Insurance ("WSI") denied Rick Brockel medical benefits and terminated his disability benefits. Upon review of Brockel's arguments on appeal, the Supreme Court concluded WSI's finding that Brockel's…
Date: February 13, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 30
Docket Number: 20130192
Justia Opinion Summary: Cory Reis appealed criminal judgments entered after he conditionally pled guilty to controlled substance, burglary and theft of property charges. The Supreme Court concluded the district court did not err in denying…
Date: February 13, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 34
Docket Number: 20130207
Justia Opinion Summary: Roger Sundsbak, George Bitz and Northern Livestock Auction appealed a district court judgment granting Craig Anderson's motion for summary judgment and denying Northern Livestock's motion to amend their counterclaim.…
Date: February 13, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 25
Docket Number: 20130254
Justia Opinion Summary: Kyle Mackey appealed a district court order denying his motion to modify parenting time and petition for non-parental visitation. Upon review of the district court record, the Supreme Court concluded the district court…
Date: February 13, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 23
Docket Number: 20130257
Justia Opinion Summary: Michael Hamre appealed a district court order affirming a North Dakota Department of Transportation ("DOT") order disqualifying his commercial driver's license for one year. Hamre argued: (1) that DOT misapplied the law…
Date: February 13, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 33
Docket Number: 20130278
Justia Opinion Summary: Richard L. Hagar, judge of the district court for the North Central Judicial District, filed exceptions to the Judicial Conduct Commission's recommended findings that he violated provisions of the Code of Judicial…
Date: February 13, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 24
Docket Number: 20130330
Justia Opinion Summary: The North Dakota Department of Transportation appealed the reversal of an administrative hearing officer's decision suspending Tammy Wampler's driving privileges. A Jamestown city police officer received a call regarding…
Date: February 13, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 32
Docket Number: 20130376
Justia Opinion Summary: G.R.'s father, W.R., appealed a juvenile court order terminating his parental rights. W.R. argued the juvenile court erred in finding the causes and conditions of the deprivation were likely to continue and finding the…
Date: February 13, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 28
Docket Number: 20130382
Justia Opinion Summary: Mother S.L.-C., and father N.P., separately appealed a juvenile court order terminating their parental rights to their three children. Upon careful consideration of the facts of this case, the Supreme Court concluded the…
Date: February 12, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 19
Docket Numbers: 20130414, 20130416
Date: February 10, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 18
Docket Number: 20130277
Justia Opinion Summary: Joshua Cook appealed a criminal judgment entered after he conditionally pled guilty to four drug-related charges and after a jury found him guilty of reckless endangerment. Because he failed to comply with the North…
Date: January 30, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 16
Docket Number: 20140003
Date: January 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 14
Docket Number: 20130016
Justia Opinion Summary: In March 2011, the State charged defendant Mitchell Holbach with terrorizing, alleging he had sent letters or filed documents with the court threatening various public officials, law enforcement officers, and…
Date: January 28, 2014
Citation: 2014 ND 15
Docket Number: 20140008
Date: January 17, 2014
Citations: 2014 ND 12, 841 N.W.2d 774
Docket Number: 20130157
Justia Opinion Summary: Laura Jean Entzel appealed a district court opinion that awarded her a partial refund of her prepaid rental fee, and an order denying her request for attorney fees. Entzel entered into a Boat Space Rental Agreement with…
Date: January 17, 2014
Citations: 2014 ND 11, 841 N.W.2d 759
Docket Number: 20130199
Justia Opinion Summary: From 1998 through 2009, Keith Jensen owned a cattle feedlot in South Dakota. Jensen did not personally operate the feedlot but used it for his cattle-brokering business. Jensen leased the feedlot to Arden Sieh under a…
Date: January 17, 2014
Citations: 2014 ND 13, 841 N.W.2d 767
Docket Number: 20130225
Justia Opinion Summary: Branden Schwalk appealed a district court order denying his motion to modify his child support obligation. The Supreme Court affirmed, concluding the court did not err in holding Schwalk's motion was not supported by the…
Date: January 14, 2014
Citations: 2014 ND 7, 841 N.W.2d 687
Docket Number: 20130034
Justia Opinion Summary: Jeff Trosen appealed a district court judgment that dismissed his legal and equitable claims against Shirley Trosen and Brent Trosen. Upon review, the Supreme Court affirmed the judgment, concluding the district court…
Date: January 14, 2014
Citations: 2014 ND 2, 841 N.W.2d 697
Docket Number: 20130070
Justia Opinion Summary: Melissa Horacek appealed a judgment granting Richard Lucas's motion to change primary residential responsibility for their minor child from Horacek to Lucas. Because the Supreme Court concluded the district court failed…
Date: January 14, 2014
Citations: 2014 ND 3, 841 N.W.2d 705
Docket Number: 20130080
Justia Opinion Summary: Sagebrush Resources, LLC, appealed the grant of summary judgment dismissing with prejudice its action for trespass and for injunctive relief against Daryl, Larry, and Galen Peterson. The trial court found the action was…
Date: January 14, 2014
Citations: 2014 ND 5, 841 N.W.2d 716
Docket Number: 20130125
Justia Opinion Summary: Trista Conzemius appealed, and Chad Conzemius cross-appealed a divorce judgment that awarded Trista child support, denied her spousal support, determined residential responsibility for the parties' minor child, and…
Date: January 14, 2014
Citations: 2014 ND 10, 841 N.W.2d 731
Docket Number: 20130151
Justia Opinion Summary: In prosecutions underlying this appeal, Casey Phillips applied for indigent defense services, and the district court appointed counsel to represent him. Phillips pled guilty to charges of violating a domestic violence…
Date: January 14, 2014
Citations: 2014 ND 4, 841 N.W.2d 735
Docket Numbers: 20130165, 20130168
Justia Opinion Summary: Alicia Hart appealed her conviction for possession of drug paraphernalia after entering a conditional guilty plea reserving the right to appeal the denial of her motion to suppress. In a separate case, Paul Timothy Sitte…
Date: January 14, 2014
Citations: 2014 ND 8, 841 N.W.2d 743
Docket Number: 20130206
Justia Opinion Summary: Bernice Gustafson, as personal representative of the estate of Leonard, Brian, and Michael Gustafson, initiated an action to quiet title to certain mineral interests located in Burke County in October 2011 by service by…
Date: January 14, 2014
Citations: 2014 ND 6, 841 N.W.2d 750
Docket Number: 20130211
Justia Opinion Summary: Michael Lee Broadwell was found guilty of burglary, terrorizing, making a false report, giving false information or report to law enforcement officers, simple assault, and disorderly conduct. He appealed, but the appeal…
Date: January 14, 2014
Citations: 2014 ND 9, 841 N.W.2d 755
Docket Number: 20130214
Justia Opinion Summary: In April 2013, Randy Holkesvig petitioned the district court for a disorderly conduct restraining order against a business, Dakota Spas. Holkesvig's petition essentially alleged that after buying a hot tub cover from…
Date: January 9, 2014
Citations: 2014 ND 1, 841 N.W.2d 683
Docket Numbers: 20130343, 20130345
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