Justia Kansas Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the judgment of a panel of the court of appeals affirming Defendant's conviction of possession of more than 3.5 grams of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, possession of a firearm within ten years of a prior felony conviction, and two counts of drug paraphernalia possession, holding that insufficient evidence supported Defendant's firearm possession conviction.On appeal, Defendant raised six allegations of error. The Supreme Court reversed in part, holding (1) the panel erred when it refused to consider for the first time on appeal the legal appropriateness of an intent-to-distribute instruction and the instruction's permissive inference was legally inappropriate, but this error was not prejudicial; (2) Defendant's constitutional challenges failed; (3) there was insufficient evidence to support Defendant's firearm conviction; and (4) Defendant was not entitled to relief on his remaining claims of error. View "State v. Valdez" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the lower court finding the legislative reapportionment in the map colloquially known as "Ad Astra 2" constitutionally deficient as a partisan and racial gerrymander, holding that Plaintiffs did not prevail on any of their claims that Ad Astra 2 violates the Kansas Constitution.The district court held that Sub. SB 355 violates the Kansas Constitution as both a partisan and a racial gerrymander. The Supreme Court reversed, holding (1) this Court had jurisdiction to hear Plaintiffs' claims; (2) claims of excessive partisan gerrymandering are nonjusticiable in Kansas; and (3) Plaintiffs did not establish the elements of their race-based claims. View "Rivera v. Schwab" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court upheld the validity of Substitute for Senate Bill 563 (Sub. SB 563), holding that the Kansas State House and Kansas State Senate reapportionment maps contained within Sub. SB 563 contain no constitutional errors.The two maps at issue were approved by bipartisan majorities, and Sub. SB 563 was signed into law on April 15, 2022. On April 25, Attorney General Derek Schmidt petitioned the Supreme Court to determine the validity of Sub. SB 563, as required by Kan. Const. art. 10, 1(b). The Supreme Court held that Sub. SB 563 passed constitutional muster because the legislative maps contained therein satisfied the constitutional requirement of one person one vote, they were not discriminatory, and they satisfied the requirements of the Voting Rights Act. View "In re Validity of Substitute for Senate Bill 563" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's convictions for felony murder and aggravated robbery, holding that there was no error or abuse of discretion in the proceedings below.On appeal, Defendant argued that the indictment forming the basis of his conviction was statutorily and constitutionally defective, that the district court erred in several respects, and that the cumulative effect of those errors violated his constitutional right to a fair trial. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the second superseding indictment did not implicate Kan. Stat. Ann. 22-3015 or deprive Defendant of due process; (2) the district court did not err in denying Defendant's motion to dismiss or in admitting into evidence the deposition testimony of a witness unavailable to testify at trial; (3) Defendant was not entitled to a self-defense instruction; and (4) where there was no error, the cumulative doctrine did not apply. View "State v. Keys" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's convictions of felony possession of methamphetamine, misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia with intent to use, and misdemeanor theft, holding that the district court did not err in denying Defendant's motion to suppress.Defendant was detained at Walmart for trying to leave the store without paying for merchandise. Defendant was arrested and taken to jail, where a booking deputy conduct an inventory search of Defendant's possessions. Upon discovering illicit drugs the deputy did a strip search of Defendant's person, discovering more illicit drugs. Defendant moved to suppress the drugs and paraphernalia based on an illegal misdemeanor arrest. The motion was denied, and Defendant was convicted. On appeal, Defendant argued that the evidence should have been suppressed because the officer illegally arrested her rather than issuing her a notice to appear. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the officer had probable cause to believe Defendant committed misdemeanor theft and would not be apprehended. View "State v. Goodro" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court denying Defendant's motions filed under Kan. Stat. Ann. 60-1507 and Kan. Stat. Ann. 22-3504, holding that Defendant's section 60-1507 motion was untimely and successive and that Defendant's sentence was not illegal.In 2003, Defendant was convicted by a jury of first-degree murder and sentenced to a hard fifty life sentence. Since his conviction, Defendant filed multiple collateral attacks on his sentence and conviction, all of which were unsuccessful. In the motions at issue on appeal, Defendant alleged that his sentence was unconstitutional under Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U.S. 466 (2000) and that this Court's failure to correct his sentence violated Kan. Stat. Ann. 21-6628(c). The district court denied both motions. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the district court did not err in denying the motions. View "Drennan v. State" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the district court denying Defendant's pro se motion to correct an illegal sentence, holding that the district court did not err in summarily denying Defendant's motion.A jury convicted Defendant of aggravated burglary, aggravated kidnapping, rape, and two counts of aggravated sodomy. Defendant later filed a pro se motion to correct an illegal sentence under Kan. Stat. Ann. 22-3504, arguing that his sentence was illegal because he was denied his statutory right to a speedy trial and his right to allocution at sentencing. The district court denied the motion without holding an evidentiary hearing. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that neither of Defendant's claims was properly before the court in a motion to correct an illegal sentence. View "State v. Mitchell" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court denied an amended petition in mandamus and quo warranto filed by the Kansas Attorney General, on behalf of Wyandotte County Election Commissioner Scott Schwab and Wyandotte County Election Commissioner Michael Abbott, seeking dismissal of three lawsuits pending before Wyandotte County District Court Judge Bill Klapper and Douglas County District Judge Mark Simpson, holding that Petitioners' claims did not lie in either mandamus or quo warranto.Two lawsuits at issue were filed in the Wyandotte County District Court and asked the district court to rule that congressional reapportionment map known as "Ad Astra 2" and contained in Senate Bill 355 violates the Kansas Constitution. The suits named as defendants Schwab and Abbott. The third lawsuit based on these same facts was filed in Douglas County District Court against Shwab. The Supreme Court denied relief, holding that Petitioners' claims did not lie in either mandamus or quo warranto. View "Schwab v. Klapper " on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant's conviction of first-degree premeditated murder and aggravated robbery and his resulting sentences, holding that there was no reversible error.Defendant was found guilty by a jury of committing first-degree premeditated murder and aggravated robbery when he was fifteen years old. Defendant was sentenced life imprisonment for the murder conviction and a consecutive sixty-one months' term of imprisonment for the robbery conviction. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the district court did not err by not giving an instruction on voluntary manslaughter-heat of passion; (2) Defendant failed to show that the prosecutor erred; and (3) Defendant's sentence did not violate the Eighth Amendment's prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment under the principles announced in Miller v. Alabama, 567 U.S. 460 (2012). View "State v. Gulley" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court reversed the panel of the court of appeals that applied the 2018 amendments to Kan. Stat. Ann. 8-1567, the driving under the influence (DUI) statute, to Defendant, who committed a DUI before, but was sentenced after, the amendments came into effect, holding that the court of appeals erred.The Supreme Court clarified the general rule established in State v. Reese, 333 P.3d 149 (Kan. 2014), that courts should apply the DUI sentencing provisions in effect at the time of sentencing but holding that a sentencing court should apply the version of section 8-1567 in effect at the time of sentencing unless the Legislature amended the statutory provisions after the offense was committed and that amendment increases the defendant's penalty. The Court remanded the matter to the district court for resentencing under the sentencing provisions in effect when Defendant committed the DUI, holding that applying the 2018 amendments to Defendant at sentencing would increase his punishment in violation of the Ex Post Facto Clause. View "State v. Patton" on Justia Law