One Court of Justice

On Wednesday, November 24, 2010, the Michigan Supreme Court denied 12 applications for leave to appeal and remanded People v. Gentile, Case No. 141298, to the Court of Appeals as on leave granted for reconsideration of the court’s denial of the defendant’s application for leave to appeal.  The Court also took substantive action in six criminal matters and one civil case, which are discussed after the jump. Read more »

On Tuesday, November 23, 2010, the Michigan Court of Appeals published its opinion in People v. Light, No. 293746.  In Light, the court concluded that a conviction for unarmed robbery completely subsumes larceny.  Therefore, under the plain wording of OV 12, MCL 777.12, the defendant may not be assessed five points for contemporaneous felonious acts of robbery and either larceny from a person or larceny in a building.  Because the trial court erroneously assessed the defendant five points under OV 12, his sentenced was vacated and the case was remanded to the Leelenau County Circuit Court for resentencing. Read more »

On November 23, 2010, the Court of Appeals published its per curiam opinion in Oliver v. Smith, No. 292585.  This case arose out of tort claims asserting excessive use of force by a police officer in handcuffing plaintiff following plaintiff’s arrest for interfering with the field sobriety tests the police were conducting with another individual.  The defendant police officer raised the defense of governmental immunity and, in this appeal, the Court of Appeals found that the trial court erred in not granting summary disposition to the officer pursuant to that defense.  First, the Court found that, given the plaintiff’s acts to resist being handcuffed there was insufficient evidence to establish the officer’s allegedly too-tight handcuffing of the plaintiff (versus plaintiff’s own actions) as the cause of the alleged continuing pain and decreased range of motion.  Thus, the court found that plaintiff could not establish gross negligence causing injury to overcome the governmental immunity defense.  Next, the Court of Appeals found that there was insufficient evidence that the officer had not acted in good faith, and that because of plaintiff’s resistance to arrest, the decision to handcuff the plaintiff was a discretionary act.  Based on those findings, the Court of Appeals concluded that the officer was entitled to governmental immunity against plaintiff’s intentional tort claims.

On November 23, 2010, the Court of Appeal’s published its opinion, authored by Judge Kelly, in Myland v. Myland, No. 292868.  The primary issue in this case was the trial court’s award of spousal support.  The trial court had applied a “mechanistic” formula which used just income and the length of the marriage.  The Court of Appeals reversed and remanded, specifically stating that there was “no room for the application of rigid and arbitrary formulas in determining the appropriate amount of spousal support.”  Instead, the Court of Appeals directed the trial court to consider all the relevant factors and make specific findings of facts in reaching an award of spousal support that meets the mandate of balancing the incomes and needs of the parties.

On November 23, 2010, the Michigan Court of Appeals published its opinion in In re Nale, No. 293082, the holding that a person convicted of voluntary manslaughter forfeits all benefits from the decedent’s estate under Michigan’s “Slayer Statute”, MCL 700.2803. Read more »

The Lansing State Journal is reporting that Governor Granholm has appointed Amy Krause, a Lansing-area district court judge to the Court of Appeals.  Judge Krause fills the seat that has been vacant since Governor Granholm elevated Justice Alton Davis to the Michigan Supreme Court.  Judge Krause’s appointment ends speculation that Justice Davis would be reappointed to his former seat after losing his bid to be elected to the Michigan Supreme Court.

On November 22, 2010, the Michigan Supreme Court denied 78 applications for leave to appeal and 10 motions for reconsideration.  The Court also ordered three cases held until resolution of other pending cases; remanded one criminal case for appointment of appellate counsel; remanded another criminal case for consideration of an admissibility issue that the defendant raised but the Court of Appeals did not address; and remanded a final criminal case for resentencing.

According to an article in today’s Detroit Free Press, the Michigan Supreme Court “has issued a pointed and public rebuke of a former justice, Elizabeth Weaver, for making secret recordings of internal court deliberations and releasing some of the transcripts.”  The Free Press reports that the censure is in the form of a letter signed by Chief Justice Marilyn Kelly and Justices Cavanagh, Corrigan, Markman, and Young.  Justice Hathaway did not sign the letter, believing that no formal censure was appropriate without an adjudicative proceeding.  The full article can be found here.

The Michigan Court of Appeals issued a per curiam opinion in AFSCME v. Hamtramck Housing Comm’n, No. 293505 (Nov. 18, 2010), holding that the trial court erred when it dismissed the complaint for arbitration on the basis of waiver and laches.  When the parties have contractually agreed to arbitrate, all doubts regarding the proper forum should be resolved in favor of arbitration.  Accordingly, the arbitrator should decide the issue of whether the grievance was timely filed.

The Chicago Tribune reported today that the Michigan Supreme Court is postponing arguments in 18 cases until January, when Judge Mary Beth Kelly will replace Justice Alton Davis on the high court.  Ten of the cases were at the application-for-leave-to-appeal stage.  The cases were, the Tribune reports, scheduled to be argued in December but would not be resolved by the time Justice Davis leaves the Court on January 1.