Judge, North Dakota Supreme Court · Born 1957
On the bench with
Pederson v. State
North Dakota Supreme Court · 2026-02-25
The case involves Jason Robert Pederson (a/k/a Katheryn Pederson) appealing the summary dismissal of her application for postconviction relief following a terrorizing conviction based on emails sent to a former employer's counsel and a subsequent probation revocation for possessing a firearm. Pederson raised claims including ineffective assistance of counsel in the revocation proceedings, lack of state court jurisdiction over matters tied to a prior federal case, numerous constitutional violations, and bias by the district judge, seeking to disqualify her. The Supreme Court of North Dakota affirmed the dismissal of most claims as barred by res judicata or misuse of process and found no abuse of discretion in denying the recusal motion, but reversed and remanded for an evidentiary hearing on the ineffective assistance of counsel claim regarding advice about firearm possession.
criminal lawproceduregunscivil rights
State v. Medina
North Dakota Supreme Court · 2026-02-19
In State v. Medina, the defendant appealed from an amended criminal judgment after a conditional guilty plea to misdemeanor charges of possessing a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia, challenging the district court's denial of his motion to suppress evidence seized during a warrantless search of his vehicle. The court affirmed the judgment, holding that the search was valid under the automobile exception to the Fourth Amendment warrant requirement. The core reasoning was that officers had probable cause based on the totality of circumstances, including the defendant's suspicious behavior at a house fire scene and their plain-view observation through the vehicle window of a cut straw with white residue and an electronic scale, both indicative of drug paraphernalia, while the car was unlocked and unoccupied in a public parking lot.
criminal lawprocedure
Christianson v. Grand Forks Public School District
North Dakota Supreme Court · 2026-02-19
David Christianson, a teacher with the Grand Forks Public School District, appealed after his two director contracts for Pep Band Director and Music-Instrumental Head Director were not renewed following a reprimand for pranks at a school event. He sued claiming the district failed to follow required nonrenewal procedures under his contracts and grievance process, including timely written decisions and arbitration options. The district court granted summary judgment to the school district, finding the director contracts were extracurricular and separate from his teaching contract, so statutory nonrenewal protections did not apply, and the Supreme Court affirmed. The court reasoned that the director contracts provided distinct additional duties and compensation without affecting the base teaching salary or load, distinguishing them from prior cases where extracurricular roles were integrated into teaching contracts. Issues like waiver of arbitration were addressed but did not change the outcome on the contracts' classification.
labor & employmentprocedure
Adoption of K.J.K.
North Dakota Supreme Court · 2026-02-19
In Adoption of K.J.K., a 76-year-old man petitioned to adopt a 40-year-old woman he had known for six years, claiming the adoption would support estate planning and allow her to care for him. The district court dismissed the petition after an evidentiary hearing, finding inconsistencies in the stated goals, concerns about the petitioner's mild cognitive impairment and unaccounted trust funds, the adoptee's unawareness that the adoption would terminate her legal relationship with her mother, and doubts about whether the adoption served the adoptee's best interests. The North Dakota Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the district court's factual findings were not clearly erroneous under the applicable standard and that the denial of the adoption decree was not an abuse of discretion, as the court had broad latitude to consider relevant facts under N.D.C.C. § 14-15-13(3) even if statutory consents were obtained. The court reviewed the decision for clear error on findings and abuse of discretion on the ultimate denial.
family law
Nygaard v. Volker, et al.
North Dakota Supreme Court · 2026-02-19
Danielle Nygaard sued Scott Volker and others to quiet title to her Fargo home, claiming Volker forged a quitclaim deed purporting to transfer the property to himself after an alleged loan default, and also seeking damages for slander of title and abuse of process. Volker denied forging the deed and counterclaimed for breach of contract and to quiet title in his favor based on a purported loan agreement. After Volker failed to comply with a court-ordered discovery process for his electronic devices, the district court struck his pleadings as a sanction under N.D.R.Civ.P. 37, entered default judgment finding the deed willfully forged, and quieted title in Nygaard's favor. The North Dakota Supreme Court affirmed because Volker did not move under N.D.R.Civ.P. 60(b) to set aside the default judgment and no irregularities appeared on the face of the judgment, while deeming his other arguments inadequately briefed or without merit.
propertyprocedure
City of Dickinson v. Helgeson
North Dakota Supreme Court · 2026-02-12 · cited 1×
In City of Dickinson v. Helgeson, the defendant was cited for a municipal ordinance violation of failing to display license plates on his vehicle and, after a jury found him in violation following extensive pre-trial motions, the district court designated him a vexatious litigant. Helgeson appealed the designation, claiming the underlying proceeding was criminal in nature so the court lacked jurisdiction to apply vexatious litigant rules and that the order violated his constitutional rights. The North Dakota Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the traffic violation is a noncriminal infraction under N.D.C.C. § 39-06.1-02 because it is not among the excepted offenses in § 39-06.1-05, granting the district court authority under N.D. Sup. Ct. Admin. R. 58 to make the designation without abuse of discretion. The court also rejected the constitutional challenge as meritless and sanctioned Helgeson $500 for submitting a brief with fictitious case citations.
procedurecriminal lawcivil rights