Buffalo
County, Nebraska >
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Attorney
The County Attorney is elected by the voters
of Buffalo County for a four-year term. Shawn Eatherton is
our current Buffalo County attorney. He took office in January
2003.
The Country Attorney appoints his own Deputies.
Our office has six Deputy County Attorneys: Andy Hoffmeister,
Melanie Young, Wendy Wussow, Melodie Bellamy, Mike Mefferd
and William Tangeman.
County Attorneys prosecute criminal cases
on behalf of the State of Nebraska in and for Buffalo County.
The basic procedure is as follows:
- An
individual violates the laws of the State of Nebraska.
- The
violator is taken to jail or is given a citation (ticket)
by the Police Department of Kearney, Elm Creek, Gibbon,
Shelton, and Ravenna; by the Buffalo County Sheriff Department,
of the Nebraska State Highway Patrol.
- If
the citation allows a waiver, the violator may plead guilty
and pay the fine and court costs.
- If
the violator is not allowed a waiver, the citation will
have an arraignment date for the violator to appear in Court.
There are three plea options at the arraignment: guilty,
no contest, not guilty. The Plea goes on the Court's record
and the fine, or jail time is assessed. If the plea is not
guilty, the matter is set for further hearing before the
Court or a Jury.
- The
County Attorney or a Deputy is selected to prosecute this
case. He or she examines all the written, photographic,
or physical evidence that the law enforcement officers and
their witnesses have provided.
- If
the violation of the law is a misdemeanor it remains in
the County Court system.
- If
the violation of the law is a felony, it is first heard
in County Court. The Judge determines if the State has presented
sufficient evidence to bind the case over to the District
Court for trial by judge or jury.
- The
County Attorney or a Deputy County Attorney goes to Court.
The suspect is called the Defendant in Criminal Court. The
accused and that person's Attorney attend court also. A
jury of six is selected for County Court and a jury of twelve
is selected for District court. The evidence is first presented
in court by the County Attorney or the Deputy County Attorney
by way of witnesses, photographic or physical evidence.
- The
Defendant's attorney then presents their case by way of
witnesses, photographic or physical evidence and occasionally
the testimony of the defendant.
- The
jury is given instructions about the law and how they may
make their decision as to the guilt or innocence of the
defendant.
- If
the defendant is found to be guilty the sentencing occurs
within thirty days.
The Bad Check Division collects
on checks that are written by people that don't have money
in the bank. The person that wrote the bad check has 10 days
to pay or we take them to court and sometimes to jail. The
Country Attorney's office helps to protect someone when they
are a danger to themselves and others. A law enforcement officer
responds to a 911 call to take someone into protective custody.
The County Attorney or Deputy meets with a Special Board to
determine if the person should be kept in custody or be released.
The County Attorney is the Coroner for the
County and is called to all accident scenes when someone dies
as a result. The Coroner also is called to the scene when
someone dies in his or her home and no Physician is in attendance.
The Coroner is called to the scene when someone dies as a
result of a crime.
When someone dies and leaves money and property,
the County Attorney reviews the paperwork to determine if
Buffalo County inheritance taxes are to be paid from the estate.
The County Attorney's office defends Buffalo
County employees in Court in Civil cases and provides legal
advice to the elected officials, including the County Board
of Supervisors that govern the county.
The Child Support Division makes sure that
Court Orders for Support are obeyed. These matters are considered
Civil and are heard in District Court. The Child Support Division
also establishes paternity and support in cases for children
born out of wedlock.
Approximately one-fourth of the County Attorney's
work is on civil matters and three-fourths is criminal litigation.
Courts of Limited Jurisdiction,
Volume II, Sections 370-771, Chapter 38, Sec. 491 Prosecutors
"It is the duty of the county attorney,
when in possession of sufficient evidence to warrant the belief
that a person is guilty and can be convicted of a felony or
misdemeanor, to prepare, sign, verify and file the proper
complaint against such person, and to appear in the several
courts of his county and prosecute the appropriate criminal
proceeding on behalf of the state and county. It is his duty
to prosecute all actions and proceedings, civil or criminal,
arising under the laws of the state, in which the state or
county is interested or which have been transferred to other
counties on change of venue. He must appear before any magistrate
and prosecute all state complaints and conduct any criminal
examination which may be had before the magistrate. He is
not required to appear and prosecute violations of city ordinances.
The county attorney has full control of the case from its
inception and may dismiss it at any stage prior to judgment.
After verdict, however, leave of court to dismiss is required
and should be granted unless the court has knowledge that
it is based on improper motives.
It is the duty of the county attorney to protect
the public interests but it is also his duty to see that the
innocent are not convicted and he must conduct the trial in
such a manner as will be fair and impartial to the rights
of an accused, no matter how guilty he may appear to be. He
must not be counsel for parties to civil litigation depending
upon the same state of facts upon which any criminal case
is based. If it is discovered before trial that he is a necessary
witness, he should withdraw from any active participation
as attorney and have other counsel prosecute the case."
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