S-17-0567 State v. Richard K. Cook (Appellant)
Douglas County, Judge J. Russell Derr
Attorneys: Gerald L. Soucie (Appellant) --- Stacy M. Foust (Attorney General’s Office)
Civil: Postconviction
Proceedings below: Cook’s convictions for first degree murder and use of a firearm to commit a felony were affirmed by the Nebraska Supreme Court. See State v. Cook, 266 Neb. 465 (2003). Cook sought postconviction relief and the Supreme Court affirmed the district court’s order denying an evidentiary hearing on 28 of his 35 claims. See State v. Cook, 290 Neb. 381 (2015). The district court held an evidentiary hearing on his remaining 7 claims and denied postconviction relief.
Issues: 1. The district court erred in failing to grant postconviction relief because of the ineffective assistance of counsel in failing to make an offer of proof regarding Mr. Cook’s testimony about statements made by Hornbacher after hearsay objections by the State in violation of the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments and decision in Strickland v. Washington. 2. The district court erred in failing to grant postconviction relief because of the ineffective assistance of counsel in directing Mr. Cook to expose the shock belt restraint to the jury during his testimony in violation of the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments and the decision in Strickland v. Washington.