EN BANC CALENDAR
Before the Minnesota Supreme Court
October 2006
SUMMARY OF ISSUES
Summaries prepared by
the Supreme Court Commissioner’s Office
Monday, October 2, 2006, 9:00 a.m.
Supreme Court Courtroom, State Capitol
Isles Wellness, Inc., n/k/a Minneapolis Wellness, Inc., et al.,
Appellants vs. Progressive Northern Insurance Co., et al., Respondents – Case
Nos. A04-485, A04‑486, A04-487, A04-488, and A04-489: In Isles
Wellness, Inc. v. Progressive N. Ins. Co., 703 N.W.2d 513, 514 (Minn. 2005), this court
held that the prohibition against corporate practice of medicine applies to the
practice of chiropractic. The question
presented in this appeal is whether appellants are entitled to be paid for
chiropractic services rendered to respondents’ insureds before this court’s
earlier decision. (Hennepin County.)
Richard J. Jacobson, Appellant vs. $55,900 in U.S. Currency, Respondent – Case No. A05-60: Agents of the Dakota County Drug Task
Force seized $55,900 in currency from a safe in an apartment building owned by
appellant Richard Jacobson after a narcotics detection dog alerted on the
currency. Jacobson contests the
forfeiture of the currency and presents the following issues on appeal: (1) whether he preserved for appeal his challenge
to the district court’s credibility determinations; (2) whether he presented
testimony sufficient to rebut the statutory presumption that the currency was
involved with controlled substances; (3) whether the district court
erroneously admitted evidence of a canine sniff as substantive evidence that
the currency was involved with controlled substances; and (4) whether the
evidence was insufficient, as a matter of law, to establish by clear and
convincing evidence the forfeitable nature of the currency. (Dakota County.)
Tuesday, October 3, 2006, 9:00 a.m.
Supreme Court Courtroom, State Capitol
John S. Drewitz, Appellant vs. Motorwerks, Inc., et al.,
Respondents – Case No. A04-2338: This second lawsuit between a
shareholder/employee and the corporation that employed him presents the
following issues for review: (1) whether
appellant John Drewitz remained a shareholder in respondent Motorwerks after
his employment ended; (2) whether Drewitz’s claim for a fair-value buyout
of his shares in Motorwerks is barred by res judicata; and (3) whether
Drewitz’s claims for shareholder status and distributions after his employment
ended are barred by res judicata, either because they could have been brought
as part of his first lawsuit or because he was required to amend his first
complaint to include them. (Hennepin County.)
Manpower, Inc., Relator vs. Commissioner of Revenue, Respondent
– Case No. A06-468: Relator
Manpower, Inc., appeals from a determination by the Commissioner of Revenue
that the income of its affiliate, Manpower France,
is subject to Minnesota
corporate franchise tax. At issue is whether
Manpower France is a
“foreign entity” exempt from Minnesota tax, or
whether it is subject to Minnesota
tax because it elected to be classified as a partnership for federal income tax
purposes. (Minnesota Tax Court.)
Wednesday, October 4, 2006, 10:00 a.m.
University of St. Thomas
School of Law
Richard Breza, Appellant vs. City of Minnetrista, Respondent – Case No. A04-2286: Appellant Richard Breza applied to respondent
City of Minnetrista
for an exemption from regulations governing the filling of a wetland area on his
property. The city did not respond to Breza’s
request for more than a year, and then denied on grounds it had no authority to
grant it. Minnesota Statutes § 15.99 (2004)
requires the city to approve or deny such a request within 60 days. At issue are:
(1) whether Minn. Stat. § 15.99 is merely a timing statute or
whether it allows local government units to grant exemptions not otherwise
authorized by law; and (2) whether a local government unit has authority
under the Wetland Conservation Act to grant an exemption for filling certain
types of wetlands in return for creation of new or expansion of existing
wetlands at another location. (Hennepin County.)
Thursday, October 5, 2006, 9:00 a.m.
Supreme Court Courtroom, State Capitol
State of Minnesota, Respondent vs. Arturo Montano Martinez,
Appellant – Case No. A05-696:
On appeal from his conviction of first-degree murder, appellant
Arturo Montano Martinez presents the following issues for review: (1) whether the district court erred when
it allowed the prosecution to introduce testimony given in an earlier trial by
a witness who initially refused to testify in Martinez’s trial; (2) whether
the admission of expert testimony on gangs deprived Martinez of a fair trial;
and (3) whether the district court erred in sentencing. (Hennepin County.)
State of Minnesota,
Respondent vs. Morris Jerome Pendleton, Jr., Appellant – Case No.
A05-1758: On appeal from his conviction of first-degree
murder, appellant Morris Pendleton, Jr., presents the following issues for
review: (1) whether the district
court erred in denying Pendleton’s challenge under Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U.S. 79 (1986), to the
prosecution’s peremptory strike of a minority from the jury; (2) whether
the district court erred in admitting evidence of Pendleton’s two prior
convictions of making terroristic threats and fleeing a police officer; and (3) whether
the district court erred in its instructions to the jury on the charge of
felony murder committed during the course of a kidnapping. (Redwood County.)
Monday, October 9, 2006, 9:00 a.m.
Courtroom 300, Minnesota
Judicial Center
In the
Matter of the Rate Appeal of Benedictine
Health Center
– Case No. A05-873: Appellant Benedictine
Health Center
appeals from a decision of the Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of
Human Services disallowing, for purposes of setting appellant’s rates, certain
costs pertaining to a self-insured group health plan for appellant’s
employees. At issue is the extent to
which costs pertaining to self-insured group health plans were “incurred” by
appellant, as that term is used in setting the rate at which the state reimburses
nursing homes for caring for residents eligible for medical assistance. (Minnesota Department of Human
Services.)
State of Minnesota, Appellant vs. William Leroy Fields,
Respondent - Case No. A04-2474:
On appeal from the reversal of the conviction of respondent William
Fields of criminal sexual conduct, appellant State of Minnesota presents the
following issues on appeal: (1) whether
the prosecution properly cross-examined Fields about allegations that he had
stolen money from a previous employer without giving notice to the defense that
it intended to do so; (2) whether the prosecution’s closing argument
constituted improper vouching for witnesses or a misstatement of the applicable
burden of proof; and (3) whether the district court’s improper instruction
to the jury that the victim’s testimony need not be corroborated requires that Fields
receive a new trial. (Otter Tail County.)
Tuesday, October 10, 2006, 9:00 a.m.
Courtroom 300, Minnesota
Judicial Center
In the Matter of the Welfare of:
S.M.E., Child – Case No. A06-330: By order dated December 13, 2005,
the Carver County Juvenile Court revoked a stay of adjudication in S.M.E.’s
juvenile court proceedings. S.M.E.’s
counsel requested reconsideration of the revocation, and the juvenile court
held an evidentiary hearing on the request.
On January 12, 2006, the juvenile court issued amended
findings of fact and an order reaffirming its earlier decision. S.M.E. filed a notice of appeal on February 13, 2006,
from the January 12 order. The
court of appeals dismissed the appeal as untimely. At issue are:
(1) whether the January 12 order was an appealable order; and
(2) if the January 12 order was not itself appealable, whether it
extended the time to appeal from the December 13, 2005, order. (Carver County.)
NONORAL: Randall Mark Spears, Appellant vs. State of Minnesota,
Respondent – Case No. A05-319: Appellant Randall Spears
was convicted of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and sentenced as a
patterned sex offender to a term of imprisonment of 40 years, an upward
durational departure. The question on
appeal from the denial of postconviction relief is whether Spear’s claims under
Apprendi v. New
Jersey, 530 U.S. 466 (2000), and Blakely v. Washington, 542 U.S. 296 (2004),
are procedurally barred because they were raised in an earlier postconviction
petition. (Scott County.)
NONORAL: Cletus Eugene Schneider, petitioner, Appellant vs. State of Minnesota,
Respondent – Case No. A06-625: On appeal from the denial
of postconviction relief from his conviction of first-degree murder, appellant
Cletus Schneider presents the following issues for review: (1) whether the district court erred in
denying his petition for postconviction relief without conducting an
evidentiary hearing; and (2) whether he was denied effective assistance of
counsel at trial and on appeal. (Dakota County.)
Wednesday, October 11, 2006, 9:30 a.m.
Hutchinson High School
All Parks Alliance
for Change, Appellant vs. Uniprop Manufactured Housing Communities Income Fund,
d/b/a Ardmor Village, Respondent – Case No. A05-912: Appellant All Parks Alliance for Change
presents the following issues on appeal:
(1) whether respondent, the owner of a manufactured home park, may,
as a reasonable limit as to time, place and manner, allow noncommercial leafleting/canvassing
only between the hours of 11:00 a.m. and 6:00 or 7:00 p.m., Monday through
Saturday; and (2) whether respondent may enforce a “no-contact” list that
prohibits noncommercial contact with specific residents. (Dakota County.)