State v. Lyons

423 N.W.2d 95, 1988 Minn. App. LEXIS 429, 1988 WL 40001
CourtCourt of Appeals of Minnesota
DecidedMay 3, 1988
DocketC4-87-1871
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 423 N.W.2d 95 (State v. Lyons) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Minnesota primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Lyons, 423 N.W.2d 95, 1988 Minn. App. LEXIS 429, 1988 WL 40001 (Mich. Ct. App. 1988).

Opinion

OPINION

HUSPENI, Judge.

Appellant, Jerry Lyons, was involved in an altercation with William Rakow during which appellant allegedly wielded a firearm in a threatening manner. After Rakow reported the incident, the police visited appellant at his home and obtained from him a statement and a firearm. An omnibus order suppressed both appellant’s statement and the firearm. At trial, a second judge reversed the omnibus order. A jury found appellant guilty of second degree assault under Minn.Stat. § 609.222 (1986). Appellant’s motion for a new trial was denied and appellant was sentenced. On appeal, appellant requests that his conviction be reversed on the basis that the trial court erred in denying his motion for a new trial. We reverse and remand.

FACTS

On November 22, 1986, an altercation occurred between appellant, Jerry Lyons, and William Rakow which resulted in appellant being convicted of assault in the second degree. Although the men lived close together, they never met each other before the incident. On the evening in question, appellant and his wife returned home from visiting friends to be told by their three children that earlier in the evening children had been on their land throwing rocks at the windows and stealing items from the family garage. The Lyons children said that Joseph Rakow, a neighborhood child, had been involved in the events.

Appellant and his wife drove to the Ra-kow home and discussed the matter with *97 Joseph who was at home with a babysitter while his parents visited the Eagles Club. When the Lyons returned home, Joseph immediately telephoned his parents. After discussions with their children and the babysitter, Rakow and his wife drove to the Lyons’ house. Rakow left his wife in their vehicle and entered the Lyons’ house. Both men had been drinking; an argument ensued during which appellant allegedly threatened Rakow with a firearm. The Rakows returned home and called the police. Four police officers then went to appellant’s home, obtained his statement and took possession of the firearm.

The Omnibus Hearing

Appellant was charged with assault in the second degree. In February of 1987, the omnibus court heard testimony from Officer Holtz, one of the four officers present at appellant’s home.

Officer Holtz testified that no Miranda warning was given to appellant because there was no intention of arresting him. However, Holtz conceded that appellant was not free to leave and would have been arrested if he refused to make a statement. After the threat of arrest had been made, appellant made a statement to the police. The officer further testified that he warned appellant if he did not surrender his firearm, a search warrant would be obtained. At this point, appellant went to the basement to get his gun and handed it to the officer.

On February 9, 1987, the omnibus court issued an order suppressing appellant’s statements to the police and the firearm allegedly used in the commission of the offense.

Trial Court Review of the Omnibus Order

Trial was set before a second judge who decided to reconsider the omnibus order stating:

[I]n the case of an omnibus order [issued] by a Division II Judge, I think there is more reason to reconsider than if the omnibus order is by a Division I Judge.
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My decision, put very simply, is that because the decision was made by a Division II Judge, because that judge was in no way ever going to have to try the case and because I might not be satisfied with his rulings, I believe that the criminal justice system will be better served with the trial judge having the opportunity to reconsider the omnibus order * * *.

Appellant then petitioned this court for a writ of prohibition, which was denied on May 12, 1987. Petition for review by the supreme court was denied on June 26, 1987.

On July 15,1987, the trial court reconsidered the omnibus order based on a belief that the case presented “rather unique circumstances:”

The only reason [the judge in question] was handling the * * * omnibus hearing was that * * * the division I Judge who presides in Brainerd, was very seriously injured in a hunting accident. [The omnibus judge] had no intention of trying the action and at best, is much less experienced than [the division I judge] in felony suppression matters.
More important, while the prosecution has a right to appeal suppression orders under Rule 28.04, R.Crim.P., that right has been severely limited and circumscribed by State v. Webber, 262 N.W.2d 157 (Minn.1977) which requires that the prosecution show on appeal that the trial court “clearly and unequivocally erred, and that unless reversed, the error will have a critical impact on the outcome of the trial.” The prosecutor concedes that he can sill struggle forward with the present case even in the presence of the suppression orders of [the omnibus judge]. Therefore, the prosecution really has no viable right of appeal * * *.

The trial judge determined the omnibus order was “clearly erroneous” and concluded “while this is not an appeal by the State to the Court of Appeals, it is certainly the equivalent of such an appeal” and proceeded to reverse the order.

Appellant’s Motion for a New Trial

Both appellant’s statement to the police and the firearm were admitted as evidence *98 at trial. The jury found appellant guilty of assault in the second degree.

On September 15, 1987, appellant moved for a new trial arguing that the trial judge had no authority to reconsider the omnibus order in the absence of “extraordinary circumstances.” The trial court declined to grant a new trial on this ground, stating:

[The state] had a strong case without the physical evidence and the statements, but that meant that his appeal would have been quickly discarded under Web-ber * * *. If the omnibus court is indeed truly wrong, the trial court should not be wasting everyone’s time by going through a trial when one side is handcuffed and unable to present all of the evidence that should be admissible * * *.

In addition, appellant argued that a new trial should be granted based upon newly discovered evidence. The evidence consisted of an unsigned police report detailing a complaint by Rakow that appellant had been on his land in contravention of a court order; and statements by appellant that accounted for appellant’s whereabouts at the relevant time. The trial court denied the motion on the basis the evidence did not “bear upon [Rakow’s] trial credibility, and couldn’t as a matter of law constitute the kind of new evidence that would precipitate a new trial.”

Appellant was sentenced to 21 months and a fine of $750.00 with a $75 surcharge. The sentence was stayed for five years and appellant was placed on probation on condition he serve six months jail time with credit for time served and work release privileges.

On September 21, 1987, an appeal from the order denying a new trial was filed.

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Related

State v. Clark
442 N.W.2d 832 (Court of Appeals of Minnesota, 1989)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
423 N.W.2d 95, 1988 Minn. App. LEXIS 429, 1988 WL 40001, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-lyons-minnctapp-1988.