Opinion ID: 6348680
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: introduction

Text: This case presents an appeal from the denial of a petition to set aside a conviction pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 29-2264 (Cum. Supp. 2020). The petitioner, with the assistance of a publicly funded pro bono program at the University of Nebraska College of Law, has been pursuing set asides of several eligible convictions. All preceding petitions had been successful, and the State supported the present set aside request. The district court expressed concern at the hearing regarding a recent weapons conviction. It also voiced certain misunderstandings, corrected by the State, about the effects of - 370 - Nebraska Supreme Court Advance Sheets 311 Nebraska Reports STATE v. BRUNSEN Cite as 311 Neb. 368 setting aside convictions and whether other judges had fully reviewed the petitioner’s criminal record. The court hypothesized that as a result of the petitioner’s crimes being set aside, he could, ultimately, commit a future act of domestic terrorism and the media would direct blame upon the courts for having simply “signed off” on the process. The court also questioned whether the petitioner’s representation by a publicly funded educational program was a good use of taxpayer money. The petitioner asserts the court’s ruling was based upon untenable and unreasonable reasoning and impermissible bias and, thus, was an abuse of discretion.