Opinion ID: 4199176
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Text: Underlying Charges Michael Marvin Dugan was arrested in Wyoming under what the sheriff’s department believed to be a valid Nebraska warrant, but the warrant was not issued until after Dugan was taken into custody. Dugan waived extradition and was returned to Nebraska. In July 2006, Dugan was charged in the district court for Cheyenne County (the trial court) with one count of theft by unlawful taking. - 446 - Nebraska Supreme Court A dvance Sheets 297 Nebraska R eports DUGAN v. STATE Cite as 297 Neb. 444 Excessive Bail A ppeal Dugan moved to reduce his bail pending trial, alleging it was excessive. The motion was overruled. On May 25, 2007, Dugan appealed the denial of his motion to reduce his bail to the Court of Appeals. On June 21, 2007, the Court of Appeals dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction, explaining that under State v. Kula,1 the order appealed from was not final. The mandate of dismissal issued on July 27 and was filed with the trial court on August 2.2 Federal H abeas Action On June 26, 2007, Dugan filed an application for a writ of habeas corpus in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska. The application alleged that his arrest warrant was defective and that he was extradited without proper procedure. Dugan further alleged that his bail was excessive and that the trial court had erred in refusing to stay the criminal proceedings pending his appeal of the allegedly excessive bail. Dugan asked the federal district court to stay his trial and determine the legality of his restraint, as well as to fix a reasonable bail. A bsolute Discharge Motion and A ppeal While the federal habeas action was still pending, Dugan filed with the trial court a motion for absolute discharge for violation of his constitutional rights. Dugan alleged that his arrest warrant was defective and that his extradition was procedurally improper. The trial court denied the motion, and on October 3, 2007, Dugan appealed to the Court of Appeals. 1 State v. Kula, 254 Neb. 962, 579 N.W.2d 541 (1998). 2 See State v. Dugan, 15 Neb. App. lxxxix (No. A-07-584, June 21, 2007). - 447 - Nebraska Supreme Court A dvance Sheets 297 Nebraska R eports DUGAN v. STATE Cite as 297 Neb. 444 Trial Verdict Trial proceeded while Dugan’s federal habeas action and his appeal to the Court of Appeals from the denial of his motion for absolute discharge were pending. Dugan was found guilty on October 5, 2007, and was sentenced as a habitual criminal on December 14. He was committed to the Department of Correctional Services on December 17. Voluntary Dismissal of A bsolute Discharge A ppeal On January 10, 2008, Dugan filed a stipulation jointly with the State to dismiss his appeal to the Court of Appeals of the district court’s denial of his motion for absolute discharge, for the reason that it was interlocutory. The mandate of dismissal issued on January 16. Direct A ppeal On direct appeal from his conviction and sentence, Dugan presented 23 assignments of error. They included allegations that he was illegally arrested and improperly extradited. The Court of Appeals affirmed the conviction and sentence. With regard to the arrest and extradition, the Court of Appeals stated that considerations as to the method of obtaining jurisdiction over a criminal defendant were not relevant to the power of a court to try an accused. We denied Dugan’s petition for further review. State H abeas Action After his direct appeal was unsuccessful, Dugan filed an application in the district court for Lancaster County for a writ of habeas corpus. Dugan alleged that his conviction and sentence were void because his trial had occurred while the court was divested of jurisdiction due to the pendency of his appeals from the denial of his motion for discharge and from the denial of his motion to reduce excessive bail. - 448 - Nebraska Supreme Court A dvance Sheets 297 Nebraska R eports DUGAN v. STATE Cite as 297 Neb. 444 The court dismissed with prejudice Dugan’s application for a writ of habeas corpus relief. As to the court’s jurisdiction during the pendency of the bail appeal, the court reasoned that because the Court of Appeals never acquired jurisdiction over the interlocutory appeal of the nonfinal order, the trial court never lost jurisdiction. As to the court’s jurisdiction during the pendency of the absolute discharge appeal, the court similarly said that the arrest and extradition issues presented in the absolute discharge motion did not affect a substantial right. Therefore, the order was not final and the interlocutory appeal therefrom did not deprive the trial court of jurisdiction. Dugan appeals the dismissal of his habeas action. ASSIGNMENTS OF ERROR Dugan assigns that the district court erred in denying habeas corpus relief because (1) his sentence is void because the trial court tried, convicted, and sentenced him during the pendency of an appeal that divested the trial court of jurisdiction and (2) the Court of Appeals erred in citing the wrongly decided case State v. Kula and failed to properly exercise its jurisdiction to hear Dugan’s appeal from the trial court’s order denying his motion to reduce excessive bail.