Case Name: State of Nebraska, appellee, v. Terry Duitsman, Appellant
Court: Nebraska Supreme Court
Jurisdiction: Nebraska
Decision Date: 1972-12-08
Citations: 189 Neb. 375
Docket Number: No. 38520
Parties: State of Nebraska, appellee, v. Terry Duitsman, Appellant.
Judges: Heard before White, C. J., Spencer, Boslaugh, Smith, McCown, Newton, and Clinton, JJ.
Reporter: Nebraska Reports
Volume: 189
Pages: 375–376

Head Matter:
State of Nebraska, appellee, v. Terry Duitsman, Appellant.
202 N. W. 2d 749
Filed December 8, 1972.
No. 38520.
Bauer, Gaiter & Scott and Paul E. Gaiter, for appellant.
Clarence A. H. Meyer, Attorney General, and Calvin E. Robinson, for appellee.
Heard before White, C. J., Spencer, Boslaugh, Smith, McCown, Newton, and Clinton, JJ.

Opinion:
McCown, J.
The defendant pleaded guilty to a charge of assault and battery. He was sentenced to 90 days in the county jail. The only issue on appeal is his claim that the sentence was excessive.
The record reveals that defendant attacked the victim with a 14-inch wrench which had a sharp edge on it. The victim had two cuts on his head which required stitches. Under a plea bargain, the original charge of felonious assault was amended to the misdemeanor charge here and the defendant pleaded guilty. In addition, the defendant's previous record shows multiple misdemeanor convictions, at least one of which was a conviction for assault and battery. It also includes at least one violation of probation. See State v. Duitsman, 186 Neb. 39, 180 N. W. 2d 685.
The authorized penalties here include a jail sentence not exceeding 6 months. See § 28-411, R. S. Supp., 1972. The 90-day sentence demonstrates the exercise of sound judicial discretion. The appeal here is utterly frivolous. A sentence imposed within statutory limits will' not ordinarily be disturbed -in the absence of an abuse of judicial discretion. State v. Ernest, 188 Neb. 648, 198 N. W. 2d 335.
Affirmed.