State v. Steger
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The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the district court convicting and sentencing Defendant for felony driving under the influence (DUI), holding that Defendant sufficiently objected regarding his inability to pay a statutory surcharge imposed by the district court at sentencing.
After a hearing, the district court ordered Defendant to pay a $5000 mandatory fine for a felony DUI and also ordered him to pay fees and costs, a $500 surcharge, a witness fee, a prosecution fee, and a technology fee. On appeal, Defendant argued that the district court should have waived the $500 surcharge due to his inability to pay. The State argued in retort that the colloquy between Defendant and the district court was too nonspecific to count as an objection to the surcharge. The Supreme Court reversed in part, holding that Defendant's objection was sufficient to notify the district court that the required ability-to-pay inquiry was at play.
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