The Utah Supreme Court established that courts review the objective reasonableness of imminence beliefs for correctness in pretrial justification hearings and reversed a dismissal where the defendant’s belief that a student posed an imminent threat to others was unreasonable.
The Utah Supreme Court clarifies that rule 412 hearings are for legal argument on evidence already identified by the moving party, not for compelling victim testimony to discover or test evidence.
Utah appellate courts cannot presume prejudice from denial of allocution rights because Utah’s indeterminate sentencing system gives trial judges much less discretion than federal courts.
The Utah Supreme Court affirmed postconviction relief where police coaches and prosecutors knowingly failed to correct false testimony, finding the cumulative constitutional violations created a reasonable likelihood of a different outcome.
The Utah Supreme Court clarified when prosecutors may refile criminal charges after dismissal at preliminary hearing, requiring evidence of bad faith or intent to harass rather than automatic restrictions.
This decision clarifies that Utah’s general saving statute protects pending criminal prosecutions from abatement when the underlying criminal statute is repealed.
Lotus Appellate Law handles appeals throughout Utah, serving clients in all counties and courts across the state including:
