DARRELL BELLARD v. STATE OF MARYLAND
Court of Appeals, Watts, March 31, 2017,
Sentencing- CR 2-304(a) – Following conviction for 1st-degree murder, the judge (not the jury) determines whether to sentence the defendant to life imprisonment or life imprisonment without the possibility of parole
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. MARVIN WILBERT POWELL
US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, Niemeyer, March 1, 2017,
Ineffective Assistance- A defense attorney was not required to seek to disqualify a juror where she told the defendant’s father that “everything would be alright and that [he] needed to give [his] son a good kick in the butt.”
RODERICK COLVIN v. STATE OF MARYLAND
Court of Appeals, Dec. 15, 2016, Barbera,
Illegal Sentence – “[O]nly claims sounding in substantive law, not procedural law, may be raised through a Rule 4-345(a) motion”
KEVON SPENCER v. STATE OF MARYLAND
Court of Appeals, Greene, Nov. 29, 2016,
Attempt- Where defendant veered off of the road to get around police vehicles and struck a pedestrian, insufficient evidence to convict of attempted murder
(Plurality opinion as to Batson, with Watts concurring. Majority opinion formed for the Insufficient Evidence portion by adding Barbera)
(Dissent in part- Barbera – Disagrees on Batson, but agrees insufficient evidence to convict of attempted murder. Essentially quotes that portion of the CoSA opinion.)
(Dissent and Concur- Watts- Agrees on Batson, but disagrees that there was insufficient evidence to convict)
(Dissent- McDonald – Disagrees on Batson, disagrees on insufficiency of evidence – and we should get rid of peremptory challenges)
(Dissent- Getty- Disagrees on Batson, disagrees on insufficiency of evidence)
Continue reading
BRAVO-FERNANDEZ v. UNITED STATES
Supreme Court of the United States, Ginsburg, Nov. 29, 2016,
Double Jeopardy – Issue Preclusion – Inconsistent jury verdicts do not result in issue preclusion when the guilty verdict is vacated for unrelated reasons
(Concur – Thomas – Quoting Scalia’s dissents as to issue preclusion being part of Double Jeopardy at all)
Continue reading
DARRELL BELLARD v. STATE OF MARYLAND
Court of Special Appeals, Nazarian, August 31, 2016,
Murder – Sentencing – Statutory remnants of the repeal of the death penalty did not create a new sentencing procedure that allowed for election of sentencing by jury in 1st Degree Murder trials
MASHEA LOUISE RAY-SIMMONS A/K/A TAYANA SIMMONS AND ANTIONETTE MCGOULDRICK v. STATE OF MARYLAND
Court of Appeals, Barbera, Filed Feb. 22, 2016,
Jury Selection – Prosecutor’s explanation facing Batson challenge that “I intended to replace [a struck juror] with another black male” is not race-neutral and not “clear and reasonably specific” as to the basis for the strike
(Dissent- McDonald – We should get rid of peremptory challenges altogether. Prosecutor’s explanation related to stage 1 (pattern), not stage 2 (explanation). Also, objection was waived.)
Continue reading
TIMOTHY LEE HURST, PETITIONER v. FLORIDA
Supreme Court of the United States, Sotomayor, Filed Jan. 12, 2016,
6th Amendment – Capital Punishment – “The Sixth Amendment requires a jury, not a judge, to find each fact necessary to impose a sentence of death.”
OCTAVIUS SAVAGE v. STATE OF MARYLAND
Court of Special Appeals, Raker, Filed Dec. 15, 2015,
Conspiracy – Conviction for conspiracy to commit murder is not legally inconsistent despite conviction on 2nd degree murder and acquittal on first degree murder
(opinion re-issued March 23, 2016)
Continue reading
RODERICK COLVIN v. STATE OF MARYLAND
Court of Special Appeals, Zarnoch, Filed Nov. 30, 2015,
Jury Trial – Polling – Where the foreperson announces the verdict of the jury and the clerk announces the recorded verdicts, polling the jurors and not expressly including the foreperson “does not render the verdict a nullity”*.
Vacated by CoA opinion
(Dissent – Friedman – “It is only because of my view as to the merits that I would decline to reach the merits.” Yep. Exact quote. Realizes the “chicken-and-the-egg quality to [his] analysis,” but continues nonetheless.)
Continue reading