This summary was computer-generated without any editorial revision. It is not official, has not been checked for accuracy, and is NOT citable.
Facts
The Defendant was convicted of aggravated stalking, false imprisonment, deprivation of the property of a household member, and interference with communications. These convictions stemmed from two incidents involving his ex-wife on May 2, 2022, during which he violated an order of protection by threatening her with a knife and later taking her car keys and phone to drive her and their child to various locations (paras 2-5).
Procedural History
- District Court, Date: The Defendant was convicted of aggravated stalking, false imprisonment, deprivation of the property of a household member, and interference with communications (para 1).
Parties' Submissions
- Defendant-Appellant: Argued that the district court erred in the jury instructions for aggravated stalking, which affected the false imprisonment conviction, claimed double jeopardy violations for the deprivation of property and interference with communications convictions, and contested the designation of his convictions as serious violent offenses under the EMDA (paras 1, 6, 16, 19, 23).
- Plaintiff-Appellee: Argued that the jury instructions were appropriate, the convictions did not violate double jeopardy, and the designation of serious violent offenses was justified.
Legal Issues
- Did the district court err in omitting essential elements from the aggravated stalking jury instruction?
- Did the errors in the aggravated stalking instruction affect the jury’s deliberations on the false imprisonment conviction?
- Do the convictions for deprivation of the property of a household member and interference with communications violate the Defendant's right to be free from double jeopardy?
- Did the district court err in designating the Defendant’s false imprisonment and aggravated stalking convictions as serious violent offenses under the EMDA?
Disposition
- The court affirmed the Defendant's convictions but remanded the case for correction of the judgment and sentence regarding the false imprisonment conviction and reconsideration of the aggravated stalking conviction's designation as a serious violent offense under the EMDA (para 30).
Reasons
Per Duffy J. (Hanisee and Henderson JJ. concurring):
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Aggravated Stalking Instruction: The court found no reversible error in the jury instruction for aggravated stalking. The omission of "mutual violation" language was appropriate as the order of protection was nonmutual, and the evidence did not support a mutual violation scenario (paras 7-11). The omission of language regarding the knife as a deadly weapon was an error but not fundamental, as the evidence strongly indicated the knife was used as a weapon (paras 12-15).
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False Imprisonment: The court found no fundamental error affecting the false imprisonment conviction, as the jury's decision did not hinge on the aggravated stalking instruction errors (paras 16-18).
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Double Jeopardy: The court declined to address the double jeopardy claim due to the Defendant's failure to develop the argument regarding legislative intent (paras 19-22).
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Serious Violent Offenses: The court agreed with the Defendant that false imprisonment was not a serious violent offense under the EMDA and required correction. The court remanded for reconsideration of the aggravated stalking conviction's designation, as the district court did not make a specific finding on whether the offense was committed in a physically violent manner (paras 23-29).