State v. Blackburn

The State of Alabama filed a condemnation action in the Colbert County Probate Court to acquire certain property owned by Stephen W. Blackburn and Doris M. Blackburn. The probate court entered an order of condemnation and determined the value of the condemned property to be $201,000. The State appealed to the circuit court, where a jury returned a verdict setting the value at $127,500. The trial court granted the Blackburns' motion for a new trial, without specifying its reason for doing so; the State's motion to set aside the new trial order was denied. The State appeals.

"When the trial…