S-18-0372 State of Nebraska v. Sami Mrza (Appellant)
Lancaster County, Hon. Lori Maret
Attorneys: Douglas J. Peterson and Kimberly Klein (Attorney General’s Office) --- Sanford Pollack (Pollack & Ball) for Appellant.
Criminal: First Degree Sexual Assault
Proceedings Below: Following a jury trial, Mrza was convicted of first degree sexual assault and sentenced to 8 to 15 years’ imprisonment.
Issues: 1) The district court erred in finding sufficient evidence to support Appellant’s conviction. 2) Appellant was denied a fair trial due to prosecutorial misconduct during closing argument. 3) Appellant asserts he received ineffective assistance of counsel due to trial counsel’s failures to (a) move to suppress Appellant’s involuntary statements, (b) object to Snapchat messages that were not properly authenticated, (c) adequately investigate Appellant’s defenses and cross-examine witnesses, and (d) object to prosecutorial misconduct, resulting in waiver, and failing to request a mistrial. 4) The district court erred in imposing an excessive sentence.