Court Opinion

ID: 9705415
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 01:05:16.998561+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:22:10.909536
License: Public Domain

*234Gerrard, J.,
concurring.
I reluctantly concur in the result reached in the majority opinion. I write separately to articulate my views regarding the third prong of the test articulated in Miller v. California, 413 U.S. 15, 93 S. Ct. 2607, 37 L. Ed. 2d 419 (1973), i.e., the “value” of the material at issue. As this determination does not depend upon community standards and is particularly susceptible to appellate review, an appellate court considering this issue conducts a de novo review and reaches a conclusion independent of that of the trial court. See State v. Harrold, 256 Neb. 829, 593 N.W.2d 299 (1999).
An appellate court’s de novo review of the value of the material at issue is appropriate because the appellate court is at least as qualified as the trier of fact to make such a determination. See id. While we may be as qualified as the trier of fact, we are not necessarily as qualified to determine the artistic value of a work as is an expert in the field of art, and we are often guided by testimony from such experts in our de novo review.
The trial court and the majority in this case rely upon the opinion of Dr. Roger Aikin, an acknowledged expert in the field of art. I find Aikin’s testimony to be marginally persuasive regarding the “four-comers” analysis and not at all persuasive regarding his “Dickey” venue analysis. I do find Aikin’s testimony, however, to be essentially uncontradicted, and his qualifications and the foundation for Aikin’s opinion have not been challenged on appeal.
Because we are “in all respects confined to the record properly before us, limited to what was presented to the trial tribunal,” see Fremont Joint Stock Land Bank v. Harding, 130 Neb. 842, 846, 266 N.W. 714, 716 (1936), I join in the judgment of the majority. Even though the appellate court conducts a de novo review, it is most helpful to have meaningful evidence in the record in order to conduct an insightful inquiry into the artistic value of the material at issue. It is not the proper role of an appellate court to become a “super expert,” randomly imposing its opinion over those opinions properly admitted in evidence.
With that caveat, I must conclude, after a de novo review of the record before us, that the State met its burden of proving that *235the material at issue lacked serious artistic value. Hence, I concur.