TOPEKA—A three-judge panel of the Kansas Court of Appeals will hear oral arguments in three cases Tuesday, March 18, at the Leavenworth Justice Center at 601 South 3rd Street in Leavenworth.
Judge Henry W. Green Jr. will be the presiding judge for the panel that also includes Judge G. Joseph Pierron Jr. and Judge Caleb Stegall.
Attorneys for each side of a case are allotted time to present their arguments and judges can ask questions. The court will then take each case under consideration. Written decisions are issued later, usually within about 60 days.
Following are summaries of the cases to be heard:
9 a.m. — March 18, 2014
Appeal No. 110,192: Jonathon M. Moore v. Cimarex Energy Co., Inc and Liberty Mutual Insurance Co.
Moore appeals the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board denial of benefits, arguing the board misinterpreted the law defining an ordinary disease of life and aggravating a pre-existing condition, and that the benefits denial was unreasonable and not supported by substantial evidence.
Appeal No. 109,377: State of Kansas v. Melvin Lee
A Wyandotte County jury convicted Lee of aggravated burglary and criminal damage to property (PlayStation 3) valued at less than $500. Lee appeals, arguing the state’s evidence wasn’t sufficient to convict him of aggravated burglary because the jury instructions listed the wrong address for the house he was accused of entering. Lee also argues the state’s evidence was insufficient to convict him of criminal damage to property because the jury instructions listed one roommate (Brown) as the PlayStation 3 owner, when it really belonged to Brown’s roommate (Cobb).
1:30 p.m. — March 18, 2014
Appeal No. 110,508: Betty Turner v. State of Kansas and State Self-Insurance Fund
Turner applied for workers compensation benefits after she fell and hurt her shoulder at work. The administrative law judge determined Turner was entitled to compensation for a 16 percent permanent partial impairment for her shoulder injury. The judge also determined that Turner failed to prove a neck injury was caused by her work accident. The Workers Compensation Appeals Board affirmed the administrative law judge’s decision. On this appeal, Turner argues the board erred determining she failed to prove her neck injury was caused by her work accident and also in calculating her average weekly wage.