Nebraska Supreme Court Decisions 2017

Justia Opinion Summary: Huff was tried for first-degree sexual assault. After voir dire, 12 regular jurors and one alternate were sworn in. The next day, juror M.F., communicated that he was anxious about serving and discussed the issue with…

Justia Opinion Summary: In 1998, the Laus bought land from Walters, who financed the purchase. An attorney, chosen by Walters, drafted the documents. The deed of trust included a right of first refusal that ended once the financing was paid. At…

Justia Opinion Summary: Royal filed a quiet title action against his predecessors in interest and against Omaha Public Power District (OPPD) alleging fee title ownership of land along the railroad right-of-way passing through his Otoe County…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the judgment of the district court dismissing Appellants’ complaint without leave to amend. The complaint stemmed from Nebraska Department of Natural Resources’s…

Justia Opinion Summary: An insured obtained life insurance policies and named her trust as the owner. Her insurance agent stole the renewal premiums. The policies lapsed. The insured and the trust’s beneficiaries sued the trustee; the trustee…

Justia Opinion Summary: Margaret and Hannah lived together in a romantic relationship in Lincoln, Nebraska. They moved to Austin, Texas, in 2003. In 2010, Hannah gave birth to a baby, conceived by artificial insemination. Margaret did not adopt…

Justia Opinion Summary: While dating April, Johnson made threats concerning April’s relationship with her former husband Edward. The night before April’s death, Johnson was upset that Edward had repaired April’s van. April’s neighbors reported…

Justia Opinion Summary: Margaret and Hannah lived together in a romantic relationship in Nebraska. They moved to Texas, in 2003 where they legally changed their last names to “Whilde.” In 2010, Hannah gave birth to a baby, conceived by…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant’s convictions for unlawful discharge of a firearm and use of a weapon to commit a felony and the sentences imposed of twenty to thirty years for unlawful discharge of a firearm and an…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the decision of the district court denying Petitioner’s motion for postponement of fees. At the same time he filed his motion, Petitioner presented the district court clerk with a petition for…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the decision of the court of appeals addressing Appellant’s successive appeals from district court orders denying successive applications to proceed in forma pauperis (IFP). Appellant filed the…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of Landlord in this negligence action brought by Tenant seeking to recover damages for injuries she…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the juvenile court adjudicating Appellant for violating a Lincoln city ordinance prohibiting disturbing the peace. The juvenile court found that the State had proved the…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court granting the State’s motion to dismiss Plaintiff’s claim for damages under the Nebraska Claims for Wrongful Conviction and Imprisonment Act, holding that…

Justia Opinion Summary: In these postconviction proceedings, the Supreme Court vacated the order of the district court on remand from the Supreme Court, holding that the district court misinterpreted the directions on remand and entered an…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed, as modified by this opinion, the order of the district court dissolving Brian Osantowski’s marriage to Dori Ann Osantowski, dividing the martial assets and debts, and ordering Brian to make an…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the district court decreeing that a residence be repainted from a blue color to an earth tone after the homeowners association sued to enforce restrictive covenants. The…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the district court’s denial, without an evidentiary hearing, of Appellant’s motion for postconviction relief. In his motion, Appellant alleged that counsel was ineffective in several respects.…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the denial of Petitioner’s petition for a writ of prohibition, holding that there was no merit to Petitioner’s assignment of error. Petitioner pled guilty to driving under the influence of…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant’s convictions for unlawful discharge of a firearm and use of a weapon to commit a felony, holding that the district court did not err when it denied Defendant a new trial based on his…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the decision of the district court concluding that the Nebraska Department of Labor’s action intercepting Appellee’s tax refund from the state to partially pay a judgment determining that…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed in part and vacated in part the decision of the juvenile court finding allegations of domestic violence to be true, adjudicating Father’s child on those grounds, and ordering Father to undergo…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed Defendant’s sentence of forty-five days’ jail time and six months’ probation and revocation of her license for one year connected to her plea of guilty to first-offense driving during…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the trial court convicting Defendant of two counts of murder and two counts of attempted murder. The court held (1) the search warrant that authorized police to search for and…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court denied the district court’s order denying Defendant’s second plea in bar asserting a double jeopardy violation. After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of attempted first degree sexual assault. The…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court convicting Defendant of several counts of first degree sexual assault of a child and sentencing him accordingly. The court held (1) the district court did not…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the trial court entering judgment for Defendants in this tort action filed by a pilot injured in an airplane crash. Patrick O’Brien, a pilot who was seriously injured when the…

Justia Opinion Summary: In these consolidated appeals, the Supreme Court affirmed the orders of the district court denying Defendants’ motions for absolute discharge. Gerard Bridgeford and Judith Bridgeford were charged with several…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the Nebraska Tax Equalization and Review Commission (TERC), which affirmed the valuation of the Washington County Board of Equalization of two parcels of land owned by William…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the Workers’ Compensation Court awarding an injured employee unspecified vocational rehabilitation. A vocational rehabilitation counselor recommended formal training. A vocational…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the county court, sitting as a juvenile court, to decline to adopt a case plan and court report recommended by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). Instead, the…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court affirming the county court’s order denying Appellant’s motion for absolute discharge, holding that thee court was unable to review the trial court’s…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the court of appeals determining that the district court did not abuse its discretion in sentencing Defendant to two years’ imprisonment and twelve months’ postrelease…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the district court’s denial of Appellant’s successive motion for postconviction relief without conducting an evidentiary hearing and without requiring a response from the State. The district…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this divorce case, the Supreme Court reversed the decision of the court of appeals, which affirmed in part and reversed in part the district court’s judgment, and remanded the cause with directions to affirm the…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court dismissed Appellant’s appeal from the district court’s order that denied his request to modify his probation order. In 2015, Appellant was convicted of proximately causing serious bodily injury to…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the district court’s grant of qualified immunity to county deputy sheriff James Roark in this action brought by Marilyn Walton pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 1983. In her complaint, Walton alleged a…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant’s convictions of four counts of first degree sexual assault of a child and one count of child abuse and the sentences imposed in connection with the convictions. Defendant was…

Justia Opinion Summary: At issue was whether the district court properly dismissed the petition brought by Frenchman-Cambridge Irrigation District (FCID) challenging certain integrated management plans (IMPs). The district court found that…

Justia Opinion Summary: A court can consider an exception to the State’s waiver of immunity for tort claims under the State Tort Claims Act (STCA) sua sponte and for the first time on appeal. In so holding, the Supreme Court overruled Nebraska…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the decision of the court of appeals reversing the district court’s exclusion of untimely disclosed expert opinions regarding medical bills in order to enforce progression orders in an…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the district court’s grant of summary judgment for Plaintiff inmates and grant of injunctive relief enjoining state officials and their agents from denying the inmates a marriage ceremony via…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the holding of the Court of Appeals reversing the decision of the Nebraska Workers’ Compensation Court finding that Employee’s work-related injury was fully resolved within three days of the…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the district court’s admission of evidence obtained during a search of Defendant’s room. The district court overruled Defendant’s motion to suppress evidence seized from Defendant's bedroom…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court vacated the order of the district court vacating the order of the Nebraska Liquor Control Commission, which denied four beer retailers’ applications to renew their liquor licenses. The retailers were…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the district court’s denial of Defendant’s motion for a new trial, holding that the good faith exception to the exclusionary rule applied in this case. Defendant was convicted of driving under…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the trial court denying Defendant’s motion for absolute discharge, holding (1) the district court did not err in denying Defendant’s motion for discharge based on Defendant’s…

Justia Opinion Summary: The district court lacked jurisdiction to vacate an arbitration award under the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA). Matt Karo and Michael Karo obtained federally reinsured crop insurance policies serviced by NAU Country…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed an order of the district court denying Defendant’s motion to suppress the results of a chemical breath test. The court thus affirmed Defendant’s conviction and sentence for aggravating driving…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the district court’s dismissal of this appeal, applied the savings clause of Neb. Rev. Stat. 25-1144.01, and reinstated the appeal, holding that, contrary to the conclusion of the district…

Justia Opinion Summary: At issue was whether the county court erred in overruling Defendant’s motion to suppress. The county court overruled Defendant’s motion after finding that the community caretaking exception to the Fourth Amendment…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the judgment in favor of Plaintiff, a former officer at the Tecumseh State Correctional Institution, and against Scott Busboom, an officer at the facility, holding that Busboom was entitled to…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the decision of the county court concerning the distribution of the Sheila Foxley Radford Trust, holding that the county court had insufficient evidence upon which it could base its…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this appeal from an order denying intervention in a corporation dissolution, the Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the intervenors were seeking only to relitigate matters already decided by the court. Specifically,…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the district court’s order denying an intervener’s motion to intervene in her own behalf in this complaint alleging breach of a lease. Streck, Inc. filed a complaint against the Ryan Family,…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the district court’s dismissal of Plaintiff’s application to probate his father’s will. Plaintiff allegedly learned about his father’s will more than three years after he and his brother…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the district court’s order dismissing with prejudice Plaintiff’s complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief could be granted. Plaintiff, which operated commercial grain warehouses…

Justia Opinion Summary: The common-law rule in contracts that common-law rule that the release of one joint obligor on a promissory note operates to release all represents settled law in Nebraska and should have been applied by the district…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this breach of contract action brought by Kelly Armstrong (Plaintiff), a former student at Clarkson College (Defendant), the Supreme Court reversed the district court’s denial of Defendant’s motion to set aside a jury…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the orders of the district court sustaining Defendants’ motion for summary judgment and overruling Plaintiff’s motion to alter or amend the judgment in this action brought by Plaintiff against…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the probate court denying the application of the decedent’s wife (Wife) to be treated as an omitted spouse under a section of the Nebraska Probate Code after the decedent made…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled no contest to first degree murder and was sentenced to life imprisonment. Defendant was sixteen years old at the time of the murder. Defendant’s life sentence was later vacated pursuant to Miller v.…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the district court’s decision granting Defendant’s motion for DNA testing, holding that it was “plainly evident from the record” that the DNA testing Defendant sought in his motion was not…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant’s convictions of terroristic threats, use of a weapon to commit a felony, and negligent child abuse but vacated his sentences and remanded the cause for resentencing, finding plain…

Justia Opinion Summary: The right of an intervenor to offer evidence in a quiet title action is not restricted by the lis pendens statute. After Jacobsen Land and Cattle Company and the State entered into a purchase agreement for the sale of…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was arrested in Wyoming, waived extradition, was returned to Nebraska, and was charged with one count of theft by unlawful taking. Defendant filed in the trial court a motion for absolute discharge for…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the county court’s denial of Petitioners’ petition for removal of the personal representative of the estate of the decedent pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. 30-2454. Petitioners, devisees under the…

Justia Opinion Summary: This case presented the Supreme Court’s first opportunity to address postrelease supervision as enacted by 2015 Neb. Laws, L.B. 605. Defendant was convicted of third degree sexual assault of a child and requested to…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the district court’s summary judgment orders that determined Mutual of Omaha Bank held a valid and enforceable deed of trust against Robert Watson’s homestead property. The court concluded that…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the trial court finding Appellant guilty of premeditated first degree murder and sentencing him to life imprisonment. The court held (1) the trial court erred in admitting…

Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant was charged with four crimes in connection with certain financial dealings. A jury heard his case, and after deliberating for three days, the jury reported that it was deadlocked. The district court sustained…

Justia Opinion Summary: Lori Greenwood was injured while working for J.J. Hooligans, LLC. Greenwood was informed that because of nonpayment, FirstComp Insurance Company (FirstComp) was not the workers’ compensation insurance carrier on the date…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant’s conviction for first degree sexual assault of a child under twelve years of age, holding in part that the trial court properly admitted hearsay evidence under the medical diagnosis…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court concluding that property owned by Steven and Sara Colford was not subject to the neighboring subdivision’s restrictive covenants by virtue of the doctrine of…

Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs filed a complaint against William McCoy using the pseudonyms “Jane Doe” and “John Doe.” Plaintiffs alleged that McCoy had sexually abused “Jane Doe” while she was a minor and that John Doe, who later married…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the dismissal of Appellant’s complaint against American Standard Insurance Company of Wisconsin claiming wrongful denial of coverage. American Standard denied underinsured coverage to…

Justia Opinion Summary: J.S., a student at a middle school, was suspended for fifteen days for a post made on a social media website that caused a substantial disruption at her school. J.S. requested an administrative hearing to contest her…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court reversed the district court’s conclusion that, in this construction dispute, the express terms of a subcontract did not bind the subcontractor to the dispute resolution process within the general…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the denial of Defendant’s motion to suppress evidence seized during the detention and search of a vehicle in which she was a passenger, as well as the sentence imposed for Defendant’s…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the district court that overruled Defendant’s motion for postconviction relief without an evidentiary hearing. Defendant pled guilty to five counts of first degree murder and five…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the dismissal of Plaintiffs’ breach of contract against Defendant but on different grounds than those found by the district court. The district court dismissed the action for lack of personal…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the district court’s summary judgment for the County of Lancaster in this complaint filed by the City of Lincoln seeking reimbursement of expenses paid on its employee’s behalf after a deputy…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed the district court’s dismissal of Appellant’s motion for new trial claiming newly discovered evidence, holding that Appellant failed to satisfy the timeliness requirements of Neb. Rev. Stat.…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed in part and in part vacated and dismissed a district court order that dismissed Homeowners’ amended petition in order challenging a conditional use permit issued by the Omaha Planning Board and…

Justia Opinion Summary: Accrued investment earnings or appreciation of nonmarital assets during the marriage are presumed marital unless the party seeking the classification of the growth as nonmarital proves that the growth is readily…

Justia Opinion Summary: In Hike I, Leo and Joanna Hike filed a petition of appeal seeking compensation after the State exercised its power of eminent domain in 2008 to acquire a parcel of the Hikes’ property for an expansion of a highway. The…

Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants Mary and Terry Cohan brought a medical malpractice action against Appellees alleging that Appellees’ negligent treatment caused Mary’s breast cancer to progress undiagnosed for one year, which led to Mary…

Justia Opinion Summary: The personal representative of James McGauley’s estate brought a wrongful death action against Washington County for the death of McGauley, a quarry worker who was killed while operating a dump truck on a road being…

Justia Opinion Summary: Charissa was pregnant when she married Erin. Several months later, Charissa gave birth to a daughter. Charissa listed Erin as the child’s father on her birth certificate. The parties later separated. One year later,…

Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs sued the State and the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (collectively, the State) after a state employee falsely told them that K.D.M. had no sexual abuse history and, upon K.D.M’s placement in…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant moved to vacate his conviction for one count of assault in the first degree and withdraw his plea of no contest to the charge, arguing that the district court erred by failing to properly advise him of the…

Justia Opinion Summary: 291 Neb. Admin. Code ch. 3, 010.01C does not limit “open class” carriers to providing only prearranged transportation but allows carriers to also operate on a for-hire basis. Golden Plains Services Transportation, Inc.…

Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants, the parents and special administrators of the estate of Melissa Rodriguez, who was killed by Michael Loyd, brought this negligence and wrongful death action against numerous defendants. The defendants were…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, who was charged with strangulation of his girlfriend, posted a $5,000 appearance bond. Thereafter, defendant assigned the bond funds to his attorney. The State subsequently filed an affidavit of lien for…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant’s resentencing for his first degree murder conviction. Defendant was found guilty in 2000 and was seventeen years old at the time of the crime. Resentencing was required under Miller…

Justia Opinion Summary: A passenger who threw beer out of the window of a vehicle fleeing from law enforcement was not an innocent third party. Dillon Fales and Bryant Irish - both minors - had consumed beer at a party and then left in a…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant, who was convicted of violating Neb. Rev. Stat. 28-1212.04 and other offenses, appealed the district court’s denial of his motion for postconviction relief, arguing that he should have received an evidentiary…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his drug-related convictions and sentences, raising several issues. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the district court did not err in admitting testimony regarding drug weights; (2) the…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction, rendered after a jury trial, for possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver. Defendant argued, among other things, that the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress…

Justia Opinion Summary: Norman Kroemer, an employee of Ribbon Weld, LLC sustained an eye injury in connection with the use of Omaha Track Equipment, LLC’s (OTE) tools. Kroemer and Ribbon Weld entered into a compromise lump-sum settlement for…

Justia Opinion Summary: ACI Worldwide Corp. sued Baldwin Hackett & Meeks, Inc., its cofounders, and other company principals (collectively, BHMI), alleging that BHMI misappropriated its trade secrets. BHMI counterclaimed, alleging that ACI…

Justia Opinion Summary: In 2000, doctors Strohmyer, Naegele, and Mantler formed Papillion Family Medicine, P.C. (PFM). In 2013, Strohmyer provided notice that he was leaving PFM to start his own medical practice. Strohmyer then sued PFM,…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a stipulated bench trial, Defendant was convicted of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person. Defendant was sentenced to three to five years’ imprisonment. Defendant appealed, arguing that the evidence…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant and his father were both charged with criminal conspiracy to commit felony theft. The district court joined the two cases for trial. Before trial, Defendant filed a motion for absolute discharge alleging that…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this dispute arising from a party’s failure to perform on a promissory note Steven Anderson filed a complaint against Steve Finkle alleging breach of contract and quantum meruit or unjust enrichment. After trial but…

Justia Opinion Summary: The State filed a petition against Mother and Father alleging that Child lacked prenatal care due to the fault or habits of Mother and Father. The juvenile court filed an ex parte order granting the State’s motion for…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed her conviction of first degree sexual assault of a protected individual, arguing that the evidence did not support the jury’s finding that Defendant “subjected” the victim to sexual penetration because…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court affirmed a Tax Equalization and Review Commission (TERC) order adjusting value that increased the “majority land use grass” subclass of the agricultural and horticultural land class of real property not…

Justia Opinion Summary: Douglas County challenged a district court order that required the County to pay an appointed attorney’s costs in the underlying divorce pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. 42-358 because the spouse who was responsible for the…

Justia Opinion Summary: Janice M. Hinrichsen, Inc. (JMH) had a judgment against Risk Assessment and Management, Inc. (RAM) in a previous action. In the instant action brought under the Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act (UFTA), JMH alleged that…

Justia Opinion Summary: While Tyler Thomas and Joshua Keadle were both students at Peru State College, Keadle allegedly abducted, raped, and murdered Thomas. Appellants filed a fifth amended complaint against the Board of Trustees of the…

Justia Opinion Summary: Linda Clarke filed suit against First National Bank of Omaha (FNB) alleging that she, rather than Gregg Graham, was the owner of a certificate of deposit. FNB filed a third-party action seeking recovery against Graham to…

Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant appealed the district court’s order that overruled his motion for postconviction relief without conducting an evidentiary hearing. Appellant pled no contest to one count of first degree false imprisonment and…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court held that “medical assistance” provided to Medicaid recipients includes costs for room and board and other “nonmedical” expenses at nursing facilities, and therefore, those costs can be recovered from…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant appealed his conviction for first degree sexual assault of a child, rendered after a jury trial, and his conviction of thirty-five to fifty years’ imprisonment with credit for 129 days served. The Supreme Court…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this case brought under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act and the Federal Safety Appliance Acts (FSAA), the Supreme Court held that the trial court did not err in overruling Plaintiff’s motion for a directed…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this dispute between the adult children of Robert T. McDowell and Betty Jane McDowell, the county court found ineffective Betty’s exercise of a limited power of appointment given to her by Robert’s trust when she…

Justia Opinion Summary: In this mandamus action, the State Court Administrator appealed from the district court’s denial of his motion for summary judgment and issuance of the writ of mandamus ordering the disclosure, pursuant to Nebraska’s…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Supreme Court ruled that the Nebraska Workers’ Compensation Court did not err in determining that Bennett Construction, a sole proprietorship owned and operated by Mark Bennett, was neither Robert Kohout’s direct…

Justia Opinion Summary: At issue in this case was the adjustment of the valuation of three subclasses of residential real property in Douglas County. The Tax Equalization and Review Commission (TERC) issued an order to show cause why it should…

Justia Opinion Summary: Dorothy Pluhacek died at 100 years of age. Thereafter, Margaret Hickey, the Provincial Superioress of the Omaha province of the Notre Dame Sisters, filed an application for information probate of a document that Hickey…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Appellant was found guilty of exploitation of a vulnerable adult and theft by unlawful taking. Defendant was sentenced to imprisonment of sixty months for the exploitation of a vulnerable adult…

Justia Opinion Summary: Jay Bergmeier filed a complaint for dissolution of marriage. Nanci Bergmeier filed a counter-complaint. The district court filed a decree of dissolution of marriage that (1) determined Jay’s future termination payments…

Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff filed a complaint against Defendant seeking to establish paternity, custody, and support of the parties’ minor child. Thereafter, Plaintiff moved to disqualify Defendant’s privately retained legal counsel. The…

Justia Opinion Summary: This matter arose from Plaintiff’s termination against Nebraska Machinery Company (NMC) after thirty-eight years of employment. Plaintiff filed an amended complaint against NMC seeking damages for wrongful discharge in…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Appellant was convicted of first-degree murder. The conviction arose from the fatal shooting of Gary Holmes inside a convenience store. The district court sentenced Appellant to life imprisonment. On…

Justia Opinion Summary: In 2011, eighty-six-year-old Carl Landgraf executed two joint warranty deeds conveying approximately 1,000 acres of farmland to Gail Neumeister and Marlene Neumeister. In 2012, Landgraf executed deeds to fix an error in…

Justia Opinion Summary: Jerry Morgan purchased property by obtaining a loan secured by a deed of trust. Morgan conveyed the property to his company, Midland Properties, LLC, and managed the property as a rental. Wells Fargo, N.A., which had…

Justia Opinion Summary: Ginger Cove Common Area Company sued Scott Wiekhorst for unpaid assessments. Wiekhorst filed a counterclaim alleging that Ginger Cover violated its fiduciary duty. After a bench trial, the district court entered judgment…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was charged with driving under the influence. Prior to trial, the State filed a motion for an order in limine seeking to prohibit Defendant from offering evidence regarding a “choice of evils” defense.…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Nebraska Cooperative Republican Platte Enhancement (N-CORPE), a political subdivision of the State of Nebraska, brought condemnation proceedings against Appellant seeking an easement across Appellant’s real estate.…

Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiffs were three same-sex couples who sought to enjoin Defendants from enforcing a 1995 administrative memorandum and from restricting gay and lesbian individuals and couples from being considered or selected as…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of first degree sexual assault, first degree false imprisonment, strangulation, and third degree domestic assault. The Court of Appeals affirmed. Defendant later filed a motion…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of first degree murder and use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony. This appeal concerned Defendant’s third amended motion for postconviction relief, in which Defendant alleged that his…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Nebraska Department of Revenue and the acting Tax Commissioner denied, in part, the requested refunds of Farmers Cooperative and Frontier Cooperative Co. (collectively, the Cooperatives). The district court affirmed.…

Justia Opinion Summary: The State filed juvenile petitions alleging that the three children of Mother and Father came within the meaning of Neb. Rev. Stat. 43-247(3)(a) due to the faults and habits of their parents. The juvenile court found the…

Justia Opinion Summary: In two separate cases, Defendant was convicted of two counts of possession of a controlled substance and one count of driving under the influence. In case No. S-16-419, the district court sentenced Defendant to a period…

Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff, as an individual and as an assignee, brought this action pro se to recover for wrongs allegedly committed against the assignor, a limited liability corporation (LLC). The district court dismissed the action,…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of first degree murder and use of a firearm to commit a felony. The Court of Appeals affirmed, holding that the district court did not err by (1) failing to grant Defendant’s…

Justia Opinion Summary: Seller agreed to sell an aerial spraying company to Buyer pursuant to a purchase agreement that contained a covenant not to compete. Seller, his son, and the company (collectively, Seller) subsequently filed this action…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was sentenced to not less than two years nor more than two years in prison for possession of a controlled substance - a class IV felony - and to fifteen to twenty years in prison for possession of a stolen…

Justia Opinion Summary: In 2004, Michael Burns and Kerry Burns divorced. This appeal involved a contempt proceeding between the parties that was pending before the district court for Adams County. Judge James Doyle, acting as the district judge…

Justia Opinion Summary: The Tax Equalization and Review Commission (TERC) adjusted upward by eight percent the value of the “land use grass” subclass of the agricultural and horticultural land class of real property in Franklin County not…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of first degree murder, use of a firearm to commit a felony, and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person. The trial court sentenced Defendant to life sentence for first…

Justia Opinion Summary: Western Ethanol Co., LLC obtained a judgment lien on Midwest Renewable Energy, LLC’s Lincoln County real property. Western Ethanol then dissolved and transferred its assets to its members. Douglas Vind, the managing…

Justia Opinion Summary: When he was seventeen years old, Defendant pled guilty to first degree murder. Defendant was sentenced to a mandatory term of life imprisonment. Pursuant to Miller v. Alabama, Defendant’s sentence was vacated. After a…

Justia Opinion Summary: Father appealed from a decree dissolving his marriage to Mother, contesting the award of custody of the parties’ two children to Mother, the order that Father pay child support, and the classification of lump-sum…

Justia Opinion Summary: Medicine Creek LLC filed a request for a variance from the Middle Republican Natural Resources District’s (MRNRD) moratorium on new well drilling. MRNRD voted to deny the variance. Medicine Creek sought judicial review…

Justia Opinion Summary: In 2013 and 2014, the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources (DNR) issued orders and closing notices to holders of surface water permits for natural flow and storage in the Republic River Basin. Several appropriators,…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted of first degree murder, attempted first degree murder, and two counts of use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony. Defendant was sentenced to life imprisonment on the murder conviction. After the…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled guilty to kidnapping, a crime he committed when he was sixteen years old. Defendant was initially sentenced to life imprisonment. After the U.S. Supreme Court decided Graham v. Florida and Miller v.…

Justia Opinion Summary: Landlord leased commercial real estate to Tenant, a third party. The lease agreement provided on option to purchase with a condition precedent. At the time Tenant assigned this purchase option to Assignees, Tenant had…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of first degree murder, use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony, and tampering with a witness. The Supreme Court affirmed on appeal. Defendant subsequently filed a fourth…

Justia Opinion Summary: D.I. was committed for treatment as a dangerous sex offender under the Sex Offender Commitment Act (SOCA). The Supreme Court upheld the commitment. The Douglas County public defender’s office represented D.I. during the…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of first-degree murder, first-degree assault, robbery, attempted robbery, and four counts of use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1)…

Justia Opinion Summary: Homeowners obtained loans from Bank for the construction of a new home and entered into an agreement with Contractor to complete the new home construction. When Homeowners defaulted on payments owed to Contractor and on…

Justia Opinion Summary: Brayden O. was a seventeen-year-old girl who suffered from Coffin-Lowry Syndrome and other disabilities. Brayden had been receiving home and community-based waiver services through the Medicaid division of the Nebraska…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant was convicted and sentenced for refusing to submit to a chemical test, refusing to submit to a preliminary breath test, and driving without a license. On appeal, Defendant challenged the district court’s…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Appellant was convicted of two counts of first degree murder and other crimes. Appellant was sentenced to death on each murder conviction. The Supreme Court affirmed on appeal. Appellant later filed a…

Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant was previously married to the decedent. Together, they had a son (Son). After the decedent died, Appellant filed a claim with the estate on Son’s behalf seeking one-half of Son’s reasonable secondary…

Justia Opinion Summary: Rosemary Henn filed a putative class action in a federal court alleging that American Family Mutual Insurance Company wrongfully failed to compensate her and others similarly situated by depreciating labor costs in…

Justia Opinion Summary: Dan Anderson filed suit against Union Pacific Railroad Company under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act, asserting that he suffered permanent injuries resulting from a fall during the course of his employment. The jury…

Justia Opinion Summary: David Leon Frederick sent a public records request to the City of Falls City administrator requesting certain records in the physical custody of Falls City and the Falls City Economic Development and Growth Enterprise,…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was found guilty of first degree murder and use of a weapon to commit a felony. Defendant was sentenced to life imprisonment plus ten to twenty years’ imprisonment. The Supreme Court…

Justia Opinion Summary: The State filed motions for termination of Mother’s parental rights to her five children due to abandonment, neglect, and aggravated circumstances. After a hearing, the county court granted the State’s motions to…

Justia Opinion Summary: Appellants filed an amended complaint seeking to invalidate a contract between the City of North Platte, Nebraska and Priority Medical Transport, LLC on the ground that the City provided insufficient notice of its…

Justia Opinion Summary: After Douglas County Youth Center terminated Daniel Archie’s employment, Archie brought an administrative appeal. The Douglas County Civil Service Commission reversed the termination and ordered that Archie be…

Justia Opinion Summary: After Joel Woodward was convicted of driving under the influence (DUI) a second time, the Nebraska Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) issued an order revoking Woodward’s commercial driver’s license (CDL) for life.…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine) and of driving under suspension. Defendant was sentenced to a mandatory minimum of ten years’ imprisonment to a…

Justia Opinion Summary: After an adjudicative hearing, the juvenile court found the three children of Mother and Father were within the meaning of Neb. Rev. Stat. 43-247(3)(a) as to both parents due to physical abuse. The State subsequently…

Justia Opinion Summary: Raven Addy-Cruz was killed in an automobile accident caused by Lyle Carman. Carman was employed by Lopez Trucking. Lopez Trucking had been hired by Werner Construction (Werner) to haul debris from a construction site.…

Justia Opinion Summary: Guardian Tax Partners Inc. purchased, at a treasurer’s tax sale, a one percent interest in certain Douglas County real estate owned by Skrupa Investment Company. Guardian subsequently recorded a treasurer’s tax deed to…

Justia Opinion Summary: On March 9, 2013, Stephen Kelly suffered a fall from his home. Stephen was treated at Saint Francis Medical Center by Dr. Jeff Burwell. Stephen died on March 16. On March 10, 2015, Ann Kelly filed, on her own behalf and…

Justia Opinion Summary: Appellee filed a complaint for dissolution of marriage against Appellant. During the pendency of the dissolution case, Appellant filed a separate complaint for declaratory judgment seeking an order regarding the parties’…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Appellant was convicted of two counts of first degree murder. Appellant was sentenced to life without parole on both counts. The Supreme Court affirmed on appeal. This appeal concerned Appellant’s…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Appellant was convicted of first degree murder and use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony. Appellant was sentenced to life imprisonment on the murder conviction. The Supreme Court affirmed…

Justia Opinion Summary: This appeal arose from two consolidated appeals from proceedings in the county court. The first appeal was from the court’s final order appointing a conservator for Marcia Abbott, and the second was from the court’s…

Justia Opinion Summary: After Loyola Kaiser’s husband, Albert Kaiser, died, Heartland Trust Company, as Loyola’s conservator, filed an application in the county court seeking authority to file the elective share it argued was due to Loyola as…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Appellant was convicted of two counts of first degree felony murder and other crimes. Appellant was sentenced to life imprisonment for each first degree murder. The Supreme Court vacated Appellant’s…

Justia Opinion Summary: Pursuant to a plea agreement, Defendant pled guilty to attempted possession of a controlled substance and driving under the influence. The district court sentenced Defendant to two jail sentences, to be served…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of intentional child abuse resulting in death. Defendant was sentenced to imprisonment for eighty years to life. Defendant appealed, assigning numerous errors addressed to the…

Justia Opinion Summary: After a bench trial on stipulated facts, Defendant was found guilty of refusal of a chemical test in violation of Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-6,197. Defendant appealed, arguing, primarily, that the trial court erred in denying…

Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant pled no contest to possession of a controlled substance and unlawful acts relating to drugs. After a sentencing hearing, the district court found that Defendant was not a suitable candidate for probation and…