S-19-0008 State v. Timothy L. Becker (Appellant)
Scotts Bluff County District Court, Judge Andrea Miller
Attorneys: Bernard Straetker (Scotts Bluff County Public Defender’s Office, for Appellant) --- Jordan Osborne (Office of the Attorney General, for Appellee)
Criminal: Plea; Protection order violations
Proceedings below: Pursuant to a plea agreement where the State would amend twenty one charges of a protection order violation to a first offense, Appellant entered a plea of no contest to the twenty one counts charged in the complaint. Each count was a class I misdemeanor. He was sentenced to 180 days on each count, to be served consecutively. The court delayed issuing the commitment until it researched if Appellant was required to serve the sentences at the Department of Correctional Services. Appellant was ordered to serve the sentences at DCS. On appeal to the district court, the convictions and sentences were affirmed.
Issues: Whether 1) the sentences imposed were excessive and an abuse of discretion; 2) the sentences violated the eighth amendment prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment in that they were disproportionate to the number of offenses that Appellant had committed in the past and disproportionate to the severity of the crimes involved; and 3) Under plain error review, the sentences were invalid as Appellant was not present for the commitment portion of the sentencing.