Petitions for Writ of Certiorari -- October 2014

PETITIONS FOR WRIT OF CERTIORARI

September Term, 2014

 

Granted October 21, 2014

Alexander Dykes v. State of Maryland - Case No. 70

Issues – Criminal Law – 1) When it finds meritorious grounds for granting a motion to discharge counsel, what is the extent of the trial court’s authority to appoint counsel? 2) After finding meritorious reasons for discharge and after discharging both Petitioner’s public defender specifically and the Office of the Public Defender generally, did the trial court err in denying Petitioner’s repeated pretrial requests for court-appointed counsel on the grounds that he was now “on his own” and that it did not have the authority to appoint counsel?

Scott Shader, et ux. v. Hampton Improvement Assoc., Inc. - Case No. 75

Issues – Real Property – 1) Whether the trial court properly held that Respondent was not estopped from claiming that the covenant in question was still valid in light of a prior, unappealed ruling that the covenant had been waived by abandonment? 2) Whether the trial court properly held that the covenant at issue had not been waived or abandoned? 3) Whether beneficiaries of covenants can permit violations of one part of a covenant and still seek enforcement of other parts of the same covenant? 4) Whether the trial court abused its discretion in not granting pre-trial summary judgment, where collateral estoppel should have prevented the Respondent from re-litigating facts which had been found against it in an unappealed prior action?

State of Maryland v. Kevin Hardy - Case No. 73

Issues – Criminal Law – Did CSA incorrectly reverse the trial court’s denial of Respondent’s amended petition for writ of actual innocence without a hearing where Respondent did not satisfy the statutory requirements of Section 8-301 and where the CSA ruling was inconsistent with its own case authority on the issue?

State of Maryland v. Ronnie A. Hunt - Case No. 72

Issue – Criminal Law – Did CSA incorrectly reverse the trial court’s denial of Respondent’s amended petition for writ of actual innocence without a hearing where Respondent did not satisfy the statutory requirements of Section 8-301 and where the CSA ruling was inconsistent with its own case authority on the issue?

State of Maryland v. William Westray - Case No. 74
Petition and cross-petition both granted.

Issues – Criminal Law – 1) Did CSA err in determining that, where Respondent was represented by counsel and requested discharge of counsel, the trial court was required to determine and announce on the record that he was knowingly and voluntarily waiving the right to counsel? 2) Did the trial court abuse its discretion in denying Respondent’s request for the appointment of pro bono counsel on the grounds that it lacked the power to appoint pro bono counsel for Respondent?

Nancy Lee Kathryn Thompson, et al. v. UBS Financial Services, et al. - Case No. 76
Petition granted and protective cross-petition denied.

Issues – Torts – 1) Should this Court adopt RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF TORTS § 242(2) and, in doing so, find that CSA erred in reversing the jury verdict for petitioners on conversion? 2) Did CSA err in reversing the jury verdict for petitioners on constructive fraud?

Lydia G. Wilcox, et al. v. Tristan J. Orellano - Case No. 77

Issue – Torts – Did CSA err in concluding that a stipulation of dismissal signed by both parties in a health care malpractice claim constituted a “voluntary dismissal ... by the party who commenced the action” as intended by MD Code Ann., Courts & Jud. Proc. § 5-119(a)?

Suzanne Scales Windesheim, et al. v. Frank Larocca, et al. - Case No. 71

Issues – Commercial Law – 1) Did CSA err in holding that an employee of a lender is a “lender” for purposes of civil liability under the Maryland Secondary Mortgage Loan Law (“SMLL”)? 2) Did CSA err by holding that the Respondents stated a claim on which relief could be granted under the SMLL? 3) Did CSA err by holding that a cause of action under the SMLL was “another specialty” under § 5-102 of the Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article and therefore entitled to a 12-year statute of limitations? 4) Did CSA err by holding that it was a question of fact to be decided by the jury as to whether Respondents’ claims against Petitioner were barred by the 3-year statute of limitations under § 5-101 of the Maryland Courts and Judicial Proceedings Article? 5) Whether as a matter of law a defendant may be liable under the SMLL, where the false advertising that is the purported basis for the claim occurred orally in a private setting, and where the record contains no evidence that the defendant participated in any way in the communication of the statements allegedly constituting false advertising?

 

Denied October 22, 2014

Asemani v. Corizon, Inc. - Pet. Docket No. 104
Barringer v. Hope - Pet. Docket No. 365
Chase, Cornelius Leroy v. State - Pet. Docket No. 352
Chen v. Md. Dept. of Health and Mental Hygiene - Pet. Docket No. 383
Coleman, Sterling Lee v. State - Pet. Docket No. 390
Crudup, Don v. State - Pet. Docket No. 386
Edwards, Michael Lee v. State - Pet. Docket No. 384
Ennis v. Wittstadt - Pet. Docket No. 176
Featherston v. Circuit Court for Calvert Co. - Pet. Docket No. 377
Goins, Kenneth v. State - Pet. Docket No. 391
Hargrave v. TV One, LLC - Pet. Docket No. 211
Harris, Daniel Wilson, Jr. v. State - Pet. Docket No. 375
Hunter, Anthony v. State - Pet. Docket No. 367
Hunter, Michael v. State - Pet. Docket No. 358
Katembwe, David v. State - Pet. Docket No. 359 (and conditional cross-petition)
Mast, James Jahan v. State - Pet. Docket No. 349
McComas, Henry v. State - Pet. Docket No. 231
McCoy, Charles William, Jr. v. State - Pet. Docket No. 374
Meredith, Dustin v. State - Pet. Docket No. 348
Miller, Joseph Paul v. State - Pet. Docket No. 357
Montgomery Co. v. Fraternal Order of Police - Pet. Docket No. 338 (and cross-petition)
Mwabirasimera v. Jobs Housing & Recovery - Pet. Docket No. 45
Nolan, Andre Henry v. State - Pet. Docket No. 372
Okeke, Augustine v. State - Pet. Docket No. 361
Parrott v. McDonough - Pet. Docket No. 382
Patterson v. Dore - Pet. Docket No. 487
Persaud v. Parrish - Pet. Docket No. 392
Qureshi v. Hammerman - Pet. Docket No. 230
Reed v. T-Mobile Northwest - Pet. Docket No. 438
Sams v. Henderson - Pet. Docket No. 343
Savoy, Lance Renard v. State - Pet. Docket No. 240
Sebly v. Mullen - Pet. Docket No. 373
Shubrooks, Garry V. v. State - Pet. Docket No. 322 (and conditional cross-petition)
Smallwood v. Colon - Pet. Docket No. 200
Stansell v. Silver Fox - Pet. Docket No. 381
State v. Jones, Antomar - Pet. Docket No. 346
Thomas, Theresa v. State - Pet. Docket No. 364
Toglia v. Loyola University - Pet. Docket No. 380
Walker, Najarred v. State - Pet. Docket No. 342
Wierzbic v. Fisher - Pet. Docket No. 276
Worsham v. Parrotte - Pet. Docket No. 228
Wright, Walter Lee v. State - Pet. Docket No. 387