State v. Sullivan

Shannon Sullivan appeals from a jury verdict, judgment and sentence of the Thirteenth Judicial District, Big Horn County, convicting him of deliberate homicide. We reverse and remand.

ISSUE

Did the prosecutor violate Sullivan’s right to due process and privilege against self-incrimination by commenting on Sullivan’s post-Miranda silence and is this issue reviewable under the common law plain error doctrine?

FACTS

This case arises from events that occurred in Hardin, Montana, on March 20 and 21, 1995. On the afternoon of March 20, Sullivan and the victim, Kevin Lessard (Kevin), stopped at the…