Entries tagged with “Brady” from Harmfulerror

Sherman (Donald) v. State of Nevada (Death Penalty),

Docket No. 50653

Las Vegas - 10:00 a.m. - Full Court

In this case, Donald Sherman is appealing the denial of his second post-conviction petition for a writ of habeas corpus.  Sherman was convicted of first-degree murder, burglary, and robbery for beating his estranged girlfriend's father to death with a hammer in Clark County.   The Supreme Court affirmed Sherman's conviction and death sentence on direct appeal.  Sherman then filed his first post-conviction petition for a writ of habeas corpus in district court, as well as a supplemental petition.  Both were denied by the district court and the Supreme Court upheld the decision.  Sherman then filed this second post-conviction petition, which the district court also denied based on procedural rules.  The denial of that petition is the subject of this appeal.  ISSUES: Did the district court err in determining that Sherman's claim under McConnell v. State was procedurally barred because Sherman failed to demonstrate prejudice? Did Sherman's claim pursuant to Brady v. Maryland provide good cause sufficient to overcome the procedural default? 

Hoffman (Stuart) v. Spring Valley Hospital,

Docket No. 52813

Las Vegas - 11:30 a.m. - Full Court

This appeal arises from a dispute between Spring Valley Hospital and Medical Center and Dr. Stuart Hoffman.  Spring Valley suspended Dr. Hoffman's medical privileges and submitted a report about Hoffman to the National Practitioner Data Bank pursuant to the Health Care Quality Improvement Act.  Hoffman disputed the report and filed suit in district court against Spring Valley alleging breach of contract, breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, rescission, defamation per se, and declaratory relief.  Spring Valley filed an answer to Hoffman's complaint and moved for summary judgment, which the district court granted, concluding that federal law preempted Hoffman's state law claims.  ISSUES:  Did the district court's order granting summary judgment operate as a dismissal under NRCP 12(b)(5)?  Did the district court err by dismissing Hoffman's claim on the ground that the Health Care Quality Improvement Act preempted his state law claims?   

Harris (Linda) v. Asayama (Miyoko),

Docket No. 51388

Las Vegas - 1:30 p.m. - Full Court

This appeal involves procedural issues of first impression regarding the dismissal of a tort action stemming from a motor vehicle accident for failing to timely hold a case conference within NRCP 16.1(e)(1)'s 180-day period.  Linda Marie Harris was injured when her car collided with a vehicle driven by Miyoko Asayama.  Harris filed a district court complaint, which she served on Asayama on March 2, 2007.  Harris allegedly gave Asayama an open-ended extension of time to answer and Asayama filed an answer on June 14, 2007.  On August 6, 2007, Harris filed a request for exemption from arbitration, which the Alternative Dispute Resolution Commissioner granted on August 24, 2007.  Harris subsequently held an early case conference on December 26, 2007, after noticing the conference two days earlier, on December 24.  Asayama did not attend the December 26 conference, however, as she had informed Harris on December 24 that the notice of the conference was inadequate and that her counsel was scheduled to be off on December 26.  Harris subsequently filed an individual case conference report on January 22, 2008.  In the meantime, Asayama filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit because Harris failed to hold an NRCP 16.1(b)(1) case conference within the 180-day period set forth in NRCP 16.1(e)(1). The district court granted the motion to dismiss because a case conference was not held in a timely manner and there were no compelling and extraordinary circumstances warranting an extension.  ISSUES:  Was Harris's complaint deemed to be in the court-annexed arbitration program from the moment of filing until it was exempted from the program?  When does NRCP 16.1(e)(1)'s 180-day period for holding a case conference start to run for cases that are not eligible for automatic exemption from the court-annexed arbitration program?  Did the district court abuse its discretion by granting Asayama's motion to dismiss the complaint, without prejudice, under NRCP 16.1(e)(1) for failing to timely hold a case conference? 

Moon (Joon) v. McDonald Carano Wilson LLP,

Docket No. 51124

Las Vegas - 2:00 p.m. - Full Court

This appeal involves procedural issues of first impression regarding the dismissal of a professional negligence and breach of contract lawsuit against a Nevada law firm for failing to timely file a case conference report within the 240-day period set forth in NRCP 16.1(e)(2).  On November 3, 2006, Joon S. Moon and Patterson Laboratories, Inc., (collectively, Moon) filed a district court complaint against McDonald Carano & Wilson, LLP, and its attorneys William A.S. McGrath and John J. Laxague (collectively, MCW). Moon served the complaint on December 29, 2006, and MCW filed an answer in January 2007.  On March 29, 2007, the arbitration commissioner exempted the case from arbitration.  On November 6, 2007, MCW filed a motion to dismiss under NRCP 16.1(e)(1) and (2), claiming that Moon failed to hold a case conference within the applicable 180-day period and/or file a joint case conference report within the applicable 240-day period.  Moon opposed the motion to dismiss, claiming that an early case conference was held on April 18, 2007, and that the case conference report was not due until November 26, 2007.  Moon filed his case conference report on November 21, 2007.  The district court entered an order dismissing the case after determining that the case was never submitted, ordered, accepted, or remanded into the court-annexed arbitration program and that there was no automatic suspension of the Nevada Rules of Civil Procedure.  ISSUES:  Was Moon's complaint deemed to be in the court-annexed arbitration program from the moment of filing until it was exempted from the program? When does NRCP 16.1(e)(2)'s 240-day period for filing a case conference report start to run for cases that are not eligible for automatic exemption from the court-annexed arbitration program? Did the district court abuse its discretion in dismissing Moon's complaint, without prejudice, under NRCP 16.1(e)(2) for failing to timely hold a case conference? Did Moon fail to hold a case conference so that NRCP 16.1(e)(1) provides an alternative basis for affirming the district court's order? 

Tsai (Paul) v. Hsu (Ann), Docket No. 50549
Las Vegas (Regional Justice Center) - 10:00 a.m. - Justices Cherry, Saitta, and Gibbons

This case involves a 1996 settlement agreement in a divorce proceeding between Paul Tsai and Ann Hsu.  Part of the agreement provided that a parcel of land owned by the parties in Las Vegas was to be held in trust to pay for their children's educational expenses.  No trust documents were created at the time the settlement agreement was reached, but apparently the parties quitclaimed the property to their children.  After the divorce, the children lived with Hsu in Hong Kong where they attended private elementary and secondary schools, paid for by Hsu.  In 2007, the property was sold for a sizeable amount of money.  The parties now dispute the allocation of the proceeds from the sale of the property.  ISSUES:  Did the parties transfer their entire interest in the property to their children?  Was the trust meant to finance the children's private elementary and secondary school education when Tsai never consented to sending the children to private elementary and secondary schools?  Did the district court lack jurisdiction to make rulings regarding the trust? 

Salas (Miguel) v. State, Docket No. 51385
Las Vegas (Regional Justice Center) - 10:30 a.m. - Justices Cherry, Saitta, and Gibbons

In this appeal, issues are raised about the grand jury indictment of Miguel Salas, who was a juvenile at the time of an auto theft that led to a high speed chase and a head-on collision.  Salas was certified to stand trial as an adult following the incident in which he and Alberto Spindola broke into and stole an automobile in Las Vegas.  The pair attempted to evade capture by fleeing at high-speed from a police officer.  The chase ended in a head-on collision with another car.  Salas was arrested, certified as an adult, and charged with numerous felony violations.    The justice court, however, dismissed charges of robbery with the use of a deadly weapon and conspiracy to commit robbery for lack of probable cause, but bound over Salas to the district court on the remaining charges.  The State then convened a grand jury, which indicted Salas on the two previously dismissed charges.  Salas was found guilty at trial on all but three charges.  This appeal followed.  ISSUES:  Did the district court abuse its discretion in determining that the State provided Salas with reasonable notice of the grand jury proceedings?  Did the district court have jurisdiction to proceed on the grand jury indictment?  Did Salas demonstrate "exceptional circumstances" to show the district court abused its discretion in failing to remand his case to the juvenile court?  Did the State present sufficient evidence to convict Salas of robbery and conspiracy to commit robbery?

Callara v. Las Vegas Hilton, Docket No. 51645
Las Vegas (Regional Justice Center) - 11:30 a.m. - Justices Cherry, Saitta, and Gibbons

This is an appeal of a split verdict at trial in a personal injury case.  Roseann Callara slipped and fell in the parking/valet parking drop-off area of the Las Vegas Hilton after which two employees of Hilton moved her to a nearby bench.  Subsequently, Callara sued Hilton for neglecting to keep the area clean and for moving her after she fell.  At trial, a jury returned a verdict in favor of Callara on her claim that Hilton employees negligently moved her after she fell.  The jury, however, ruled  for Hilton on the claim of failing to keep the area clean.  This appeal followed.  ISSUES:  Did the district court abuse its discretion when it concluded that Hilton should not be held to admissions made pre-trial?  Did the district court abuse its discretion by refusing to submit the admissions to the jury as evidence?  Did the district court abuse its discretion by allowing previously undisclosed witness testimony, and by directly questioning that witness?  Did Hilton have an obligation to create records regarding when areas of its property had been cleaned and should a jury instruction have been given that the Hilton spoiled evidence when Hilton did not destroy any records, but instead never created the records that Callara sought? 

Cacho (Ashton) v. State, Docket No. 51647
Las Vegas (Regional Justice Center) - 1:30 p.m. - Justices Cherry, Saitta, and Gibbons

In this case, Ashton Cacho is appealing his 2008 conviction by a Clark County jury for one count each of open or gross lewdness and indecent exposure, and four counts of lewdness with a child under the age of 14.    ISSUES:  Are the convictions redundant?  Did the district court err in not conducting a competency hearing regarding the child victim?  Did the State withhold exculpatory evidence and/or engage in prosecutorial misconduct?  Did the State present sufficient evidence to support the jury's verdict? 

Gamble (Clarence) v. State, Docket No. 52521
Las Vegas (William S. Boyd School of Law) - 10:00 a.m. - Chief Justice Parraguirre, and Justices Hardesty and Pickering (Justice Douglas voluntarily recused himself from participation in this matter)

Numerous issues are raised in this appeal by Clarence Gamble, who was convicted of shooting and killing a woman with whom he was romantically involved.  At trial, Gamble claimed he acted in self-defense.  However, eyewitness testimony indicated otherwise.  Gamble was convicted of first-degree murder with the use of a deadly weapon and aggravated stalking.  Gamble now appeals the judgment of conviction.  ISSUES:  Did the district court err in refusing to dismiss the aggravated stalking charge?  Did the district court err in denying Gamble's objections to the State's use of peremptory challenges to excuse two prospective African-American jurors?  Did the district court err in instructions given to the jury?  Did the prosecutor commit misconduct warranting reversal of Gamble's convictions? 

Valley Health System v. Garcia (Waneira), Docket No. 50507 c/w 50509 and 50684
Las Vegas (William S. Boyd School of Law) - 11:00 a.m. - Justices Hardesty, Douglas, and Pickering

This is an appeal of a jury verdict in a medical malpractice case.  In 1995, Waneira Garcia was about 39 weeks pregnant when she arrived at Valley Hospital in Las Vegas complaining of potential complications with her pregnancy.  Her daughter was delivered via Caesarian section, and suffers from ongoing developmental delays that will likely require ongoing medical treatment.  Garcia attributed her baby's problems to the negligence of the hospital and filed a lawsuit alleging medical malpractice against her OB/GYN doctor, Joseph Watson, M.D., the hospital, and two of its employees, Mary Kathryn Watts and Madonna Sturgeon.  The district court entered a default judgment against Sturgeon for her failure to appear at the trial.  A jury found in favor of Dr. Watson, but determined that the hospital and its named employees were negligent and awarded Garcia damages and attorney fees.  This appeal followed.  ISSUES:  Did the district court err in entering a default judgment against Sturgeon for her failure to attend the trial?  Did the district court err in instructing the jury?  Did the district court abuse its discretion in awarding attorney fees to Garcia?

In FCC v. Fox Television Stations, in a 5-4 decision authored by Justice Scalia, the Court upheld the Federal Government's power to ban on radio and TV of the words "fuck" and "shit."  The majority refers to the words as the "f-word" and the "s-word," but I'm not afraid of the words so there they are.  Fortunately, the censors have not yet banned them on the internet, but who knows - that may be next.  Anyway, the majority finds that the FCC may sanction television stations for a single utterance of such words by a celebrity during an awards show, even though the station does not control the content of the celebrity's speech.  Justice Scalia apparently is not a fan of such persons as he refers to them as "foul-mouthed glitteratae from Hollywood."  The Court holds that the flat ban on certain words is not "arbitrary and capricious," but leaves open the question of whether the First Amendment is violated by the ban.  The Second Circuit will address that issue on remand.  Justice Thomas filed a concurring opinion.  Justice Kennedy filed an opinion concurring in part (he does not join part III-E of the Scalia opinion).  Justice Stevens authored a dissenting opinion as did Justice Ginsburg.  Justice Breyer filed a dissenting opinion which was joined by Justices Stevens, Souter, and Ginsburg.

After reading the 72 page opinion, I recommend George Carlin- Seven Dirty Words You Can't Say on Television. 

The Court also issued an opinion in Cone v. Bell.  In one of of the very few capital cases heard this term, the Court issues a 7-2 decision reversed an order of the Sixth Circuit which had affirmed the denial of federal habeas relief.  The majority, in an opinion authored by Justice Stevens, held that the lower federal courts were wrong in finding a procedural bar as the facts did not support either of the two procedural bars argued by the state.  The Court also hald that a full review of suppressed witness statements and police reports was required to determine whether they would have bolstered the defense mitigation case for the penalty hearing.  Although the evidence was insufficient to establish an insanity defense for the trial phase, evidence of habitual use of excess amounts of drugs and the impact of that addiction during the murders was relevant as mitigation.  Chief Justice Roberts filed an opinion concurring in the judgment.  Justice Alito filed an opinion concurring in part and dissenting in part.  Justice Thomas filed a dissenting opinion which was joined by Justice Scalia.