A-25-0602 State v. Shane M. Powers (Appellant)
York County District Court, Judge James C. Stecker
Attorney for Appellant: Nicholas R. Glasz (Glasz Law)
Attorney for Appellee: Michael T. Hilgers (Nebraska Attorney General), P. Christian Adamski (Assistant Attorney General).
Criminal: Ineffective assistance; 1st degree sexual assault of child; child abuse, incest.
Action Taken by Trial Court: In March 2025, following a hearing on the State’s motion in limine regarding the admissibility of the victims’ forensic interviews, the district court granted the State’s motion in limine. In its order, the court memorialized the parties’ oral stipulation to the admissibility of the forensic interviews and further found the interviews admissible under the medical purpose exception to the hearsay rule. Following a jury trial, the York County district court found the Appellant guilty of first degree sexual assault of a child, child abuse, and incest.
Assignments of Error on Appeal: On appeal, Appellant assigns that his trial counsel was ineffective in (1) failing to object to prosecutorial misconduct which elicited improper expert witness testimony; (2) failing to object to an expert’s qualifications to offer an opinion on truthfulness; (3) stipulating to the admission of three BraveBe forensic interview videos received as exhibits and (4) failing to adequately prepare Powers to testify.