State v. Huston

Summary

The Nebraska Supreme Court held that an amendment to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 60-4,108, which made driver's-license revocation discretionary for certain first-offense driving-during-revocation defendants placed on probation, applied retroactively because it mitigated punishment and took effect before final judgment. The court vacated Brianna L. Huston's sentence in its entirety and remanded for resentencing under the amended statute.

Holdings

1. When a criminal statute is amended to mitigate punishment after the offense but before final judgment, the amended punishment applies unless the Legislature provides otherwise. Because the amendment to § 60-4,108 took effect before final judgment and mitigated Huston's punishment, it applied retroactively to her sentence.
2. Because the county court believed the former law required a one-year license revocation, it failed to exercise the discretion required by the amended statute. That failure constituted plain error entitling Huston to retroactive relief and resentencing.
3. The court was not required to analyze Huston's additional challenge concerning when the revocation should begin because retroactive application of the amended statute independently required vacatur and resentencing.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the 2017 amendment to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 60-4,108, which mitigated the punishment for first-offense driving during revocation by allowing discretion concerning license revocation for offenders placed on probation, applied retroactively to Huston's sentence.
2. Whether the county court's failure to exercise discretion concerning license revocation required vacatur and resentencing.
3. Whether the court needed to reach Huston's additional assignment of error concerning when the revocation should begin.

Disposition

vacated