State v. Himes

Defendant was convicted for failure to register as a securities salesperson, failure to register a security, and fraudulent practices, all felonies. The district court sentenced him to three concurrent ten-year sentences with all but ninety days suspended, plus restitution and court costs. The Supreme Court reversed Defendant’s conviction for fraudulent practices and otherwise affirmed, holding (1) the term “security” was adequately defined for the jury; (2) the State provided sufficient evidence to prove Defendant sold a security; (3) the district court correctly instructed the jury in accordance with the statutory definition of “willfully”; (4) sufficient evidence existed to support the jury’s finding that Defendant had the requisite mental state to violate the Securities Act, and because Defendant was not convicted of a strict liability offense, his ten-year sentence did not violate his due process rights; (5) the district court erred by instructing the jury that the willful omission of a prospectus constituted fraudulent practices; and (6) Defendant was properly sentenced. Remanded for a new trial on the fraudulent practices charge. View "State v. Himes" on Justia Law