State v. Steele, 915 N.W.2d 560

On April 18, 2016, two men entered a Lincoln residence during an attempted robbery; one victim (Coleman) was shot and killed, another (Griffis) was shot multiple times and rendered partially paralyzed; a dog and personal property (marijuana) were also shot/taken.
Police tied footwear impressions, Facebook communications, witnesses, and a co-participant’s testimony to Markel D. Steele (who was 17 at the time); Steele later admitted to confidential informants he shot the victims.
Steele pleaded guilty under a plea deal to second-degree murder (reduced from first-degree) and first-degree assault; other counts were dismissed.
At sentencing the district court considered Steele’s youth, mental health evaluation, statutory mitigating factors (citing Miller/Graham and Neb. Rev. Stat. § 28-105.02), but emphasized the premeditation, violence, presence of children, and need to protect the public.
The court imposed consecutive sentences: 60 years to life for second-degree murder and 40–50 years for first-degree assault, with parole eligibility in 50 years (Steele would be ~67).

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether sentence is a de facto life sentence	State: sentence lawful; parole eligibility at 67 provides meaningful opportunity for release	Steele: Miller requires a finding of "irreparably corrupt" before any de facto life sentence may be imposed; his sentence is de facto life	Court: Not a de facto life sentence; parole eligibility at 67 is a meaningful and realistic opportunity for release; no Miller violation
Whether sentences are excessive/abuse of discretion	State: sentencing within statutory limits and court properly weighed relevant factors	Steele: court abused discretion, failed to consider certain mitigating factors and exhibited bias	Court: No abuse; court considered youth, mental health, statutory mitigators, offense depravity, and public safety; no evidence of improper bias

Miller v. Alabama, 567 U.S. 460 (2012) (mandatory life without parole for juveniles unconstitutional; requires individualized sentencing consideration)
Graham v. Florida, 560 U.S. 48 (2010) (Eighth Amendment bars life without parole for nonhomicide juvenile offenders)
State v. Russell, 299 Neb. 483 (2018) (term-of-years sentence with realistic parole opportunity is not a de facto life sentence under Miller)
State v. Smith, 295 Neb. 957 (2017) (juvenile-sentencing principles under Miller/Graham applied in Nebraska jurisprudence)
State v. Hunt, 299 Neb. 573 (2018) (abuse of discretion standard in sentencing review)
State v. Pattno, 254 Neb. 733 (1998) (sentences vacated where judge relied on personal religious beliefs at sentencing)