Court of Appeals Chief Judge Edward Toussaint refused Tuesday to take up the appeal — filed in October by prosecutors and the defense attorney for Rochester, Minn., resident Nicholas Howard Greenwood — the judge ruled the petition lacked written evidence. Winona County Attorney Chuck MacLean said last week he plans to send that evidence to the court and ask it to reconsider.
Greenwood, 27, tried to plead guilty Oct. 22 to assault with a dangerous weapon and ineligible possession of a firearm, but Judge Jeff Thompson rejected the plea because it restricted how long Greenwood could spend in prison. The plea would have allowed either party to withdraw if Thompson sentenced outside the sentencing range agreed to by the lawyers.
MacLean and Chief Public Defender Karen Duncan signed a petition Oct. 29 to the court of appeals to force Thompson to reconsider the plea and bar him from making such rejections on future cases — based on a local rule that has not been approved by the Minnesota Supreme Court.
Toussaint wrote that the petition lacked a transcript of the Oct. 22 hearing and was also missing the written rule Thompson supposedly followed. MacLean said he obtained a written copy of the local rule and sent it to the court of appeals.
Greenwood is charged with 23 felonies, including attempted murder, assault with a dangerous weapon, drive-by shooting and terroristic threats. Court documents show he fired seven shotgun shells into a St. Charles, Minn., home Aug. 6, 2005, after making racist comments to the home’s Hispanic occupants. No one was injured in the incident.


bartski wrote on Dec 7, 2008 6:12 PM: