Category: Kansas Criminal Procedure Survey

Knowingly and Fairly Made Pleas

State v. Terning, No. 119,904 (Kan. Ct. App. Feb. 20, 2020). Issue: Under a motion to withdraw, is a plea knowingly and fairly made when the possible sentence term was mathematically different from the corrected sentence term? Answer: Yes, a …

Checking Warrants are within the Scope of Public Safety Stops

State v. McKenna, No. 119,431 (Kan. Ct. App. Jan. 31, 2020). Issue: Is an officer asking for a person’s name and subsequently checking that name for local warrants within the scope of a public safety stop? Answer: Yes, …

Sweeping Hand Gesture Counts as Consent to Search

State v. Daino, No. 120,824, (Kan. Ct. App. Jan. 10, 2020). Issue: Does opening a door to a residence and simultaneously making a non-verbal sweeping gesture in response after an officer’s request to enter count as consenting to …

Is Anyone Home? Dwelling Definition Reverses Burglary Conviction

State v. Downing, No. 116,629 (Kan. Jan. 24, 2020). Issue: Does a house meet the definition of “dwelling” for the purposes of Kan. Stat. Ann. § 21-5807(a)(1) if the house is uninhabited at the time of a burglary …

Probation Revocation Hearings Require Competency

State v. Gonzalez, No. 120,179 (Kan. Ct. App. Dec. 27, 2019). Issue: There is no statutory protection requiring a defendant be competent at a hearing to revoke his probation. Is competence constitutionally protected nonetheless at this stage? Answer: …

Warrantless Blood Test Requires a Remand

State v. Chavez-Majors, No. 115,286 (Kan. Dec. 20, 2019). Issue: Was there probable cause to administer a warrantless blood test on an unconscious driver suspect of a drunk-driving offense? Answer:  Yes, there was probable cause to administer a warrantless blood test …

Voluntary Intoxication Not a Defense to Reckless Homicide

State v. Claerhout, No. 115,227 (Kan. Dec. 6, 2019). Issue:  (1) Did the trial court correctly admit a past diversion agreement to demonstrate a a knowledge of the dangers of driving while intoxicated? (2) Is voluntary intoxication a …

Police Officers Exceed Scope of Welfare Check

State v. Ellis, No. 120,046 (Kan. Ct. App. Nov. 15, 2019) Issue: Did a police officer exceed the scope of a permissible welfare check when he detained the person for whom the welfare check was called after he …

Searching for the Seriously Injured

Kansas v. Fisher, No. 120,031 (Kan. Ct. App. Nov. 8, 2019) Issue: The emergency aid exception to the Fourth Amendment’s bar on warrantless searches requires an objectively reasonable belief that someone injured is inside. Can officers comply with …

“Reckless Disregard for Causing Fear” is Unconstitutionally Over Broad

State v. Boettger, No. 115,387 (Kan. Oct. 25, 2019). Issue: Is the Kansas criminal threat statute, which allows conviction if a person makes a threat in reckless disregard of causing fear, constitutionally over broad? Answer: Yes.  Recklessness is …

The Kansas Criminal Procedure Survey provides valuable insight into Kansas criminal procedure to Kansas practitioners. The University of Kansas Law Review publishes updates to the survey on the Kansas Criminal Procedure Blog, the online home for the survey. The Criminal Procedure Survey is a long-standing tradition of the KU School of Law and the Law Review.

We are proud to adapt the Criminal Procedure Survey into a new format that will provide timely updates to Kansas practitioners about new criminal law changes in Kansas and the 10th Circuit.