8 results for 'judge:"Swan"'.
J. Swan finds the trial court partially erred in its judgment awarding a one-half interest in a property to the ex-boyfriend in his dispute with the ex-girlfriend over ownership of the property they jointly purchased in 2001. The trial court's application of the evidence standard and challenged findings of fact are affirmed, but it improperly failed to complete its findings by not determining how much of the mortgage encumbers each of the ex-boyfriend and the ex-girlfriend's one-half interests. The trial court's judgment is partially affirmed and partially vacated, and the case is remanded only to determine how much of the ex-girlfriend's interest is encumbered by the mortgage. Affirmed in part.
Court: Virgin Islands Supreme Court, Judge: Swan, Filed On: April 3, 2024, Case #: 2024 VI 18, Categories: Property, Contract
J. Swan finds the superior court properly entered a judgment and commitment order against defendant after he was found guilty at trial of unauthorized firearm possession and other charges. The evidence was sufficient to convict defendant of all the charges he faced, and his arguments that the search of the residence where he was on house arrest violated the Fourth Amendment fail in part because his uncle who lived with him gave police consent to search the residence, because officers smelled marijuana while they searching, and because the officers were lawfully at the residence in the first place to perform a compliance check related to defendant's house arrest. Affirmed.
Court: Virgin Islands Supreme Court, Judge: Swan, Filed On: April 3, 2024, Case #: 2024 VI 17, Categories: Firearms, Search
J. Swan finds the superior court properly affirmed a magistrate's decision ordering the homeowner to pay $1,706 to the contractor for work he did remodeling her kitchen. The record shows that both the homeowner and the contractor breached the parties' work contract, so the magistrate properly apportioned liability between both of them, and the homeowner's appeals based on the magistrate shifting the burden of proof to her, disallowing her from calling witnesses, and awarding the contractor damages for her failure to pay him for electrical work all fail.
Court: Virgin Islands Supreme Court, Judge: Swan, Filed On: March 26, 2024, Case #: 2024 VI 15, Categories: Damages, Contract
J. Swan finds the superior court properly affirmed an arbitration award in favor of the business owner in the citizen's lawsuit claiming he was injured falling out of a defective chair at the business. The superior court did not err when it stayed the lawsuit pending arbitration, and the citizen has waived his right to argue that the owner waived its right to arbitration by litigating and delaying his lawsuit. Affirmed.
Court: Virgin Islands Supreme Court, Judge: Swan, Filed On: March 25, 2024, Case #: 2024 VI 14, Categories: Arbitration, Premises Liability, Contract
J. Swan finds the superior court properly convicted defendant of first-degree murder, assault as an act of domestic violence, firearm possession and other charges connected to the murder of his wife. Defendant's challenges to his conviction all fail, including those claiming that the prosecution failed to prove his actions were not a result of mental illness; the superior court failed to call a mistrial in violation of his due process rights and improperly allowed the prosecution's expert witness to testify that defendant's expert witness' report was deficient during rebuttal; and jury instructions improperly gave him the burden of presenting "some evidence" of his insanity. Because the evidence presented at trial was also sufficient to show defendant was sane when he shot his wife in anger over her plan to divorce him, defendant's conviction stands even though the prosecution made some "inappropriate statements." Affirmed.
Court: Virgin Islands Supreme Court, Judge: Swan, Filed On: January 17, 2024, Case #: 2024 VI 4, Categories: Competence, Murder, Experts
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J. Swan finds defendant's habeas corpus petition must be denied, it being the second he has brought after entering a deal to plead no contest to first-degree assault in connection with the shooting of his domestic partner and being sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment. Despite defendant's arguments that his no-contest plea was not entered knowingly, intelligently and voluntarily because certain evidence was withheld from him, his petition must be denied as procedurally barred because he previously filed a separate habeas petition making different arguments as to why his plea was unknowing, and that petition was rejected.
Court: Virgin Islands Supreme Court, Judge: Swan, Filed On: January 17, 2024, Case #: 2024 VI 5, Categories: Habeas, Assault
J. Swan finds the superior court properly denied defendant's habeas corpus petition after convicting him of first-degree murder and sentencing him to life imprisonment. Defendant's arguments supporting his petition, including that his counsel was ineffective for failing to object to inconsistent statements from two witnesses at his trial and that newly discovered evidence in the form of a witness statement exonerates him, fail, and the court's denial of his petition stands. Affirmed.
Court: Virgin Islands Supreme Court, Judge: Swan, Filed On: January 10, 2024, Case #: 2024 VI 2, Categories: Habeas, Ineffective Assistance, Murder
J. Swan finds the superior court properly dismissed the corporation's lawsuit alleging breach of contract and nonpayment of a $265,296 debt by the condo company. In part because the corporation never adequately retained counsel according to the superior court's deadlines, and because its original complaint was signed by a project manager who was not a licensed attorney in the Virgin Islands, the superior court was required to treat the complaint as a "legal nullity" and dismiss it for failure to retain counsel. The corporation incorrectly argues that the superior court dismissed the complaint for failure to prosecute. Affirmed.
Court: Virgin Islands Supreme Court, Judge: Swan, Filed On: November 21, 2023, Case #: 2023 VI 13, Categories: Due Process, Contract