State Ex Rel. Leach v. Schlaegel

Petitioners Lisa Leach and Dennie Leach, husband and wife, request this Court to issue a writ of prohibition against the Honorable E. Lee Schlaegel, Judge of the Circuit Court of Lincoln County, to prevent the enforcement of an order vacating a prior judgment in their favor for damages arising out of a domestic violence civil action. We agree with the Petitioners that the doctrine of collateral estoppel prevents relitigation in a civil setting of issues already resolved in a criminal setting. We therefore grant the requested writ and order the reinstatement of the judgment order in favor of…