Direct or Collateral? The District Court’s Duty to Establish a Knowingly Made Plea
Hailey Reed, Staff EditorState v. Wallace, No. 123,763, (Kan. Ct. App. Aug. 19, 2022) [pdf] Issue: Did the district court violate defendant’s right to due process when it entered defendant’s nolo contendere plea to a felony without first warning him about the probable loss of voting or…
Equal Protection of the Laws is Not Discretionary
Evan Bolton, Staff EditorState v. Myers, No. 123,439 (Kan. Ct. App. April 8, 2022) [pdf]Issue: Does § 21-6819 of the Kansas Sentencing Guidelines Act, which allows two or more criminal cases to be consolidated for trial if all charges could have been brought in one charging document, violate the…
Shifting Sands: Kansas’s Criminal Sentencing Guidelines
Doug Bartel, Staff EditorState v. Terrell, No. 122,680 (Kan. Feb. 18, 2022)Issue: Does the Kansas Sentencing Guidelines Act (“the Act”), K.S.A. §§ 21-6801–6824, require courts to classify crimes as person or nonperson at the time of the original sentence or at the time of the most recent crime?…
Changing the Rules in the Middle of the Game: The Ex Post Facto Clause and Clarifying State v. Reese
State v. Patton, No. 120,434, (Kan. Feb. 11, 2022).Issue: In State v. Reese, the Kansas Supreme Court held that courts should apply the version of Kansas’ DUI sentencing provisions—K.S.A. 8-1567—in effect at the time of sentencing, even if the statute changed since the offense occurred.…
Two Paths for Calculating Criminal History: Path of Admission Relieves State from Producing Additional Evidence
Lexi Christopher, Staff EditorState v. Corby, No. 122,584 (Kan. Jan. 21, 2022) [pdf]Issue: A presentence investigation report (PSI) listed two prior convictions under K.S.A. § 8-1568. However, the PSI did not specify under which subsection the violations occurred and scored both convictions…
A Vicious Cycle: Juvenile Fines and Fees in Kansas
Dahnika Shortcomments editorDahnika is a 3L at the University of Kansas School of Law. She earned her undergraduate degrees in life sciences and women’s studies from Kansas State and in nursing from the University of Kansas. Outside of law school, Dahnika enjoys all things…
Quantity v. The Right Quantity: A Greater Quantity of Contraband Than a Lesser Charge Demands Can Support the Lesser Charge
Alex Speakar, Staff EditorState v. Scheuerman, No. 122,253 (Kan. Jan. 14, 2022) [pdf].Issue: Under K.S.A. § 21-5705(a)(1) and (d)(3)(B), different amounts of methamphetamine are required for different levels of felony charges. When the statute's plain language requires that an individual must…
Challenging Prior Convictions in Kansas Sentencing: Who Has the Burden, and When?
Jeremiah Kemper, Staff EditorState v. Roberts, No. 121,682, (Kan. Nov. 19, 2021) [pdf]Issue: Under K.S.A. § 21-6814(c), when a defendant challenges the constitutionality of their prior convictions at or before their initial sentencing hearing, the State has the burden of proving any disputed…
Absconding and Probation Revocation: Intent Requirements
Author: Dahnika Short, Comments Editor State v. Dooley, No. 120,863 (Kan. July 23, 2021) Issue: Did Dooley possess the requisite intent under K.S.A. 2013 Supp. 22-3716 to warrant revocation of probation rather than the imposition of intermediate sanctions…
State v. Albano: Revisiting the Right to Have a Jury Consider Sentence-Enhancing Prior Convictions
Author: Dahnika Short, Staff Editor State v. Albano, No. 120,767 (Kan. May 28, 2021) [pdf]Issue: Does Section 5 of the Kansas Constitution Bill of Rights guarantee the right to have a jury determine the existence of sentence-enhancing prior convictions under the Kansas…