Opinion ID: 1912613
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: MATA'S DIRECT APPEAL AND ORDER Of RESENTENCING

Text: In September 2003, this court affirmed Mata's convictions and his sentence of life imprisonment for kidnapping in his direct appeal. [8] Although Mata had not raised the constitutionality of Nebraska's capital sentencing scheme at trial, we vacated his death sentence. We found plain error because a sentencing panel had found the existence of a statutory aggravating circumstance. We recognized that double jeopardy concerns attach to capital sentencing hearings in Nebraska. But we decided that Mata's resentencing would not violate the Double Jeopardy Clause because the three judge panel had not acquitted him of the death penalty. There was no acquittal because the evidence was sufficient to (1) find under § 29-2523 the existence of aggravator (1)(d) and (2) conclude that the aggravating factor outweighed the mitigating factors. Under Gales, we directed that on remand, the State could attempt to prove only whether aggravator (1)(d) existed because that was the only aggravator proved at the first trial.