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Court of Appeals Opinions

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IMPORTANT NOTICE

Appellate Courts will begin transmitting all notices, orders, and opinions electronically.

Beginning no later than July 1, 2011, the appellate courts will send notices, orders, opinions, and correspondence related to pending cases to attorneys in those cases by e-mail rather than postal mail.  All attorneys with pending appellate cases who have not already registered an e-mail address should do so immediately.  Unrepresented parties with pending appellate cases may also participate in this e-notification system by registering an e-mail address.  Please visit the Clerk of Appellate Courts page for instructions on how to register your e-mail address.
 

Opinion Policies

Minnesota Court of Appeals opinions are issued weekly and are available to the public at 10 a.m. CST/CDT every Monday.

On Wednesday of every week, the Court of Appeals will mail a notice that informs counsel, pro se parties, and court personnel associated with a case that an opinion will be released the following Monday.  Opinions are available online or by visiting the Clerk of Appellate Courts, 305 Minnesota Judicial Center, 25 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, after the Monday release time.  Copies of the opinions are mailed to involved parties on Mondays.

In certain time-sensitive cases, the Court of Appeals may issue opinions on a business day other than Monday.  In these instances, involved parties will be contacted just prior to the special release.

Please visit the Minnesota State Law Library's Appellate Opinions Archive for previously released Court of Appeals Opinions.

NOTE: If you are having trouble accessing the tabs on your mobile device, you may view all Opinions on a single page.

Published OpinionsBy statute, the Court of Appeals issues a published opinion only in the most important and complex cases. Published opinions include an extensive analysis of the facts and law. They will be considered and used by courts faced with similar issues in the future, and they are published in books found in most law libraries.

DECISIONS OF THE COURT OF APPEALS
FILED Monday, September 25, 2017



A16-1940       State of Minnesota, Respondent, vs. Kelsey Anne Souder, Appellant.
                        Carlton County District Court, Hon. Judge Leslie Beiers.
            Minnesota Rule of Evidence 609 does not preclude evidence of a criminal defendant's conviction from being admitted to impeach the defendant's trial testimony simply because the conviction and its underlying offense occurred after the defendant's charged offense.
            Affirmed.  Judge Kevin G. Ross.


A17-0456       Edward John Lapenotiere, Jr., petitioner, Appellant, vs. State of Minnesota, Respondent.
                       Morrison County District Court, Hon. Leonard A. Weiler.
            The term "school zone" as defined by Minn. Stat. § 152.01, subd. 14a (2012), includes all city blocks that surround a school property.
            Affirmed.  Judge Louise Dovre Bjorkman.
 
 
A17-0506       Joseph Anthony Favors, Appellant, vs. Terry Kneisel, et al., Respondents.
                        Carlton County District Court, Hon. Judge Leslie Beiers.
            Minnesota Statutes section 144.651 (2016) does not create a private cause of action in favor of a civilly committed patient at an inpatient facility against employees of the Minnesota Department of Human Services.
            Affirmed.  Judge Denise D. Reilly.
 
 
A16-1323       In re the Marriage of:  Steven Johnson, petitioner, Respondent, vs. Cheryl Johnson, Appellant.
                       Carlton County District Court, Hon. Shaun R. Floerke.
            If a dissolution judgment awarding the marital home to a spouse has become final, a subsequent postdissolution order directing that spouse to sell the home is an improper modification of the judgment's property division, unless the judgment authorizes the sale.
            Reversed and Remanded.  Judge Denise D. Reilly.
 
 
A16-1339       State of Minnesota, Respondent, vs. Rashad Ramon Ivy, Appellant.
                        Ramsey County District Court, Hon. Joy D. Bartscher.
            I.   The term "offense" contained in Minn. Stat. § 609.322, subd. 1(b) (2014), refers to a single charge in a criminal complaint. 
            II.   The statutory aggravating factor of multiple victims contained in Minn. Stat. § 609.322, subd. 1(b)(4), is not implicated unless the specifically charged offense alleged multiple victims.
            Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded.  Judge James B. Florey.
 


 

ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER 


ADM10-8010             Minnesota Court of Appeals Special Rules of Practice.
                                    Court of Appeals.
            Order promulgating amendments to the Special Rules of Practice for the Minnesota Court of Appeals effective September 20, 2017.
 
Unpublished OpinionsUnpublished opinions are issued in cases that are less complicated, that involve legal issues that have already been decided in published opinions, or that will affect only the parties to that particular case. These opinions are usually shorter, do not contain extensive discussion of the facts, and are not generally relied on by other courts to the same degree as published opinions.

UNPUBLISHED OPINIONS
FILED Monday, September 25, 2017

Pursuant to Minn. Stat. § 480A.08, subd. 3 (2014)


1.         A17-0117
            Tamara Lynn Kriesel, petitioner, Respondent, vs. Michael James Rossman, Appellant.
            Reversed and remanded.  Judge Kevin G. Ross
            Concurring, Judge Francis J. Connolly.
            Isanti County District Court, Hon. James Dehn.

2.         A16-1859
            State of Minnesota, Respondent, vs. Steven Bernard Edwards, Appellant.
            Affirmed.  Judge Heidi S. Schellhas.
            Hennepin County District Court, Hon. Judge Hilary L. Caligiuri.

3.         A16-1583
            State of Minnesota, Respondent, vs. Zane Robert Stigen, Appellant.
            Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded.  Judge John R. Rodenberg.
            Concurring in part, dissenting in part, Judge Michael L. Kirk.
            Polk County District Court, Hon. Judge Anne Marie Rasmusson.

4.         A17-0375
            State of Minnesota, Respondent, vs. Brett Steven Lewis, Appellant.
            Affirmed.  Judge Denise D. Reilly.
            Sherburne County District Court, Hon. Thomas D. Hayes.

5.         A16-1441
            State of Minnesota, Respondent, vs. Fabian Jonathan Suggs, Appellant.
            Affirmed.  Judge Lucinda E. Jesson.
            Hennepin County District Court, Hon. Judge Paul Scoggin.

6.         A17-0156
            Michael Dejaris Denson, petitioner, Appellant, vs. State of Minnesota, Respondent.
            Affirmed.  Judge Diane B. Bratvold.
            Ramsey County District Court, Hon. Judge G. Tony Atwal.

7.         A17-0037
            Edward Wrazidlo, Relator, vs. Lake Superior College, Respondent, Department of
            Employment and Economic Development, Respondent.
            Affirmed.  Judge Diane B. Bratvold.
            Department of Employment and Economic Development.

8.         A16-1752
            State of Minnesota, Respondent, vs. William Mcsho Hall, II, Appellant.
            Affirmed.  Judge James B. Florey.
            Concurring specially, Chief Judge Edward J. Cleary.
            Hennepin County District Court, Hon. Fred Karasov.

9.         A16-1572
            State of Minnesota, Respondent, vs. Shelly Kay Karger, Appellant.
            Affirmed.  Judge Larry B. Stauber, Jr.*
            Swift County District Court, Hon. David L. Mennis.
 
* Retired judge of the Minnesota Court of Appeals, serving by appointment pursuant to Minn. Const. art. VI, § 10.
Order OpinionsCases that involve a few simple issues may be decided by order opinions, which include little discussion of the facts of the case and a brief analysis of the laws that are involved.

RECENT ORDER OPINIONS
September 25, 2017



1.         A17-0075
            State of Minnesota, Respondent, vs. J. E. H., Appellant.
            Reversed and remanded.  Judge Thomas J. Kalitowski.*
            Hennepin County District Court, Hon. Judge Ivy S. Bernhardson.
 
* Retired judge of the Minnesota Court of Appeals, serving by appointment pursuant to Minn. Const. art. VI, § 10.
 

NO SPECIAL RELEASE OPINIONS FILED

Opinion SetsOpinion sets contain all published, unpublished, and order opinions. The sets are compressed into files that must be unpacked before opening them.

Opinion Sets For Opinions
Filed Monday, September 25, 2017

Opinion Set in a Zipped Word Document Format

  1. Click the above link.
  2. Save the unzipped file to your computer.
  3. Choose the "Open" option on the Download Complete screen.
  4. Extract the files to a location of your choice.
  5. Open the extracted file.

Opinion Set in a Zipped Rich Text Format

  1. Click the above link.
  2. Save the unzipped file to your computer.
  3. Choose the "Open" option on the Download Complete screen.
  4. Extract the files to a location of your choice.
  5. Open the extracted file.