State v. Figures, 308 Neb. 801

Background

Phillip Figures was tried for first-degree murder and use of a firearm after his then-wife, Vanessa, told police Figures and co-defendant Rufus Dennis entered victim Fredrick Green’s home, assaulted Green, and Dennis shot and killed him at Figures’ direction. Vanessa testified at trial and the State presented corroborating physical and digital evidence.
Corroboration included Green’s autopsy (multiple gunshot wounds), recovery of a taser back piece from the basement, doorbell video footage (and related timestamps), cellphone downloads/metadata showing contacts and location proximity, threatening texts from Figures to Vanessa, and some DNA results.
Figures’ defense emphasized that another man (Akil Williams) had motive/opportunity; Figures did not testify and presented limited defense evidence.
The jury convicted Figures of first-degree murder and use of a firearm; he received life plus a consecutive 40–50 year term.
On direct appeal Figures raised numerous claims including denial of substitute counsel, denial of physical discovery copies while incarcerated, erroneous removal of a juror, trial presentation in his absence, admission of hearsay/character evidence, denial of a mistrial for prosecutorial misconduct, insufficiency of evidence, cumulative error, and multiple ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claims.

Issues

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (State)	Defendant's Argument (Figures)	Held
Motion for substitution/withdrawal of counsel	Court applied correct good-cause standard; Figures failed to show counsel incompetence	Figures claimed distrust, counsel chosen by prosecution, poor communication, and incompetence	Denial affirmed; no abuse of discretion — mere dissatisfaction not good cause
Request for physical copies of discovery while incarcerated	Local practice permitted counsel to hold physical copies; defendant had access via counsel	Figures said he needed his own copies to review discovery because of poor relationship with counsel	Denial affirmed; statute allows inspection but does not mandate defendant-held physical copies
Dismissal of juror during trial	Juror had improper contact and inconsistent testimony undermining impartiality	Figures contended juror removal was unsupported and race-based (Batson)	Discharge affirmed; court had factual basis and Batson not implicated
Presentation of State’s case while defendant absent	Figures voluntarily left the courtroom and thereby waived presence	Figures argued right to be present at all stages was violated	Held waived (voluntary absence); no reversible error
Admission of character evidence and hearsay (Vanessa’s statements to officers)	Vanessa’s testimony (threats) was admissible as intertwined evidence; officer testimony was cumulative	Figures contended threats and police repetition were improper character/hearsay and prejudicial	Court erred in admitting officers’ repetition of Vanessa’s out-of-court statements but error was harmless; threats testimony objection waived; no reversal
Motion for mistrial/prosecutorial misconduct (closing rebuttal)	State’s rebuttal was brief, isolated, and did not prejudice the verdict	Figures said State’s rebuttal implied defense was hiding evidence and misled jury	Even assuming hyperbolic remark was improper, it was isolated and not prejudicial given strength of evidence; mistrial denied
Sufficiency of evidence (corroboration of confession)	Corroborating physical and digital evidence supported Vanessa’s account and Figures’ admissions	Figures argued confession insufficient without corroboration	Convictions affirmed; corroboration adequate under Scott doctrine
Ineffective assistance of counsel (multiple specific failures)	Many assignments lack record support or are insufficiently specific to resolve on direct appeal	Figures asserted multiple trial-counsel errors (investigations, cross-exam, motions, expert testing, alibi)	Most claims either lacked necessary record detail or specificity; appellate review did not conclusively show deficient performance or prejudice — claims fail

Key Cases Cited

State v. Mrza, 302 Neb. 931, 926 N.W.2d 79 (2019) (requires specific allegations of counsel deficiency on direct appeal)
State v. Bratton, 187 Neb. 460, 191 N.W.2d 612 (1971) (standard for withdrawing counsel near trial)
State v. Scott, 200 Neb. 265, 263 N.W.2d 659 (1978) (voluntary confession requires slight corroboration to establish corpus delicti)
State v. Parnell, 294 Neb. 551, 883 N.W.2d 652 (2016) (other-act evidence may be admissible if inextricably intertwined)
State v. Huff, 298 Neb. 522, 905 N.W.2d 59 (2017) (trial court’s discretion to discharge jurors for cause)
State v. Clausen, 307 Neb. 968, 951 N.W.2d 764 (2020) (standards for deciding ineffective-assistance claims on direct appeal)
State v. Hernandez, 299 Neb. 896, 911 N.W.2d 524 (2018) (framework for prosecutorial-misconduct review)
State v. Warlick, 307 Neb. , N.W.2d _ (2021) (defendant’s waiver of right to be present may be inferred from voluntary absence)