District Court for Boyd County, District Judge Mark D. Kozisek
Attorney for Appellant: Bradley Aaron Ewalt (Ewalt Law Firm)
Attorney for Appellee: Nathan Andrew Liss (Attorney General’s Office)
Criminal Action: Strangulation, terroristic threats, and false imprisonment
Action taken by the Trial Court: Following a jury trial, Pelc was found guilty of all three charges. After an enhancement hearing, the trial court found him to be a habitual criminal pursuant to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 29‑2221 (Reissue 2016), and it subsequently imposed concurrent sentences of a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison and a maximum of 14 years.
Assignments of Error on Appeal, Reordered: Did the State commit prosecutorial misconduct by asking a witness certain questions in violation of the district court’s order prohibiting Rule 404 evidence? Did the trial court err by allowing the State to ask leading questions of a witness without first asking to treat her as a hostile witness? Did the trial court err by failing to give a self-defense jury instruction as requested by Pelc? Was the evidence was insufficient to convict him on each of the charges? Did the trial court erred in finding Pelc was a habitual criminal under § 29-2221? Did Pelc receive ineffective assistance of trial counsel in various regards?