{"disclaimer":"This is a summary of public court records and is not legal advice. Missouri slip opinions may be modified or withdrawn; consult the official source.","party":{"slug":"brian-l-mefford","displayName":"Brian L. Mefford","totalCases":1},"cases":[{"caseId":"moappwd:wd86719:undated","opinionId":"a6551271-883c-5214-b367-37ebea945a38","slug":"state-of-missouri-v-brian-l-mefford-d86719","caseName":"State of Missouri\nvs.\nBrian L. Mefford","caseNumber":"WD86719","court":"moappwd","courtLabel":"Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District","decisionDate":null,"year":2025,"display_summary":"Brian L. Mefford appealed his conviction for driving while intoxicated as a habitual offender. He argued that the trial court plainly erred by not declaring a mistrial after the State referenced his post-arrest silence, and that there was insufficient evidence to prove he operated the vehicle. The appellate court affirmed the judgment, finding sufficient evidence that Mefford operated the ATV and declining to exercise its discretion to review the unpreserved plain error claim regarding post-arrest silence.","primaryTopic":"criminal-procedure","topicSlugs":["criminal-procedure","evidence","appellate-procedure","standard-of-review"],"outcomeNorm":"affirmed","officialSourceUrl":"https://www.courts.mo.gov/file.jsp?id=218414","detailUrl":"https://ott.law/missouri-courts/opinions/state-of-missouri-v-brian-l-mefford-d86719","relatedPracticeAreas":[{"slug":"criminal-law","label":"Criminal Law","href":"/practice-areas/criminal-law","score":36,"source":"tag","evidence":["tag: criminal-law","topic: criminal-procedure","text: state of missouri","text: conviction"],"url":"https://ott.law/practice-areas/criminal-law"},{"slug":"litigation","label":"Civil Litigation","href":"/practice-areas/litigation","score":12,"source":"topic","evidence":["topic: evidence","topic: appellate-procedure"],"url":"https://ott.law/practice-areas/litigation"}],"role":"respondent"}]}