Black Elk v. State

Citations

• 994 N.W.2d 394
• 2023 ND 150

Syllabus

A part must preserve an issue in district court before it can be reviewed on appeal. A party must preserve a claim of error, as it relates to the admissibility of evidence, by objecting or moving to strike the evidence on record and stating a specific ground for exclusion. This Court will exercise discretion rarely to consider issues not preserved in post-conviction proceedings, and will do so only if the error is plain and seriously affects the fairness, integrity, or public reputation of judicial proceedings. A statement is not hearsay when it is offered simply to prove the statement was made. A petitioner at a post-conviction hearing is permitted to testify about the advice given to them by counsel as long as the testimony is submitted to simply show the advice was verbalized. Advising a defendant that the defendant can deal with a material piece of evidence after a defendant has pled guilty and been sentenced by simply retracting or withdrawing the plea falls below an objectively reasonable standard of a defense attorney.