State of Nebraska v. Joseph C. Castle

Omaha, Nebraska, criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with attempted first degree sexual assault of a child, in violation of Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 28-319.01 and 28-201 (Reissue 2016).

Reported by Kent Morlan

In October 2023, Castle invited Michaela to bring L.R. to swim at a hotel where he was staying. Michaela agreed and brought L.R. to the hotel, but she later left. L.R. stayed there alone with Castle. L.R. was not toilet trained, and while Michaela was gone, she "pooped in [her] pants." Castle changed L.R.'s "Pull-Up" but he was upset with her for having an accident.

In January 2024, L.R. was removed from Michaela's care for reasons unrelated to this case and was placed with her aunt and uncle. In February, L.R.'s aunt, Amber S., put her in therapy to help her toilet train and adjust to her new living situation.

In March 2024, L.R. told Amber that Castle had hurt her in a hotel room after she had "pooped her pants." Amber asked where Castle had hurt her and L.R. pointed to her vagina. Around that same time, L.R. made a similar statement to another child in her preschool class, which prompted a report being made to the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS).

Amber was eventually directed to take L.R. to a child advocacy center, Project Harmony, which provides services for families and children regarding allegations of abuse and neglect. L.R. was seen at Project Harmony in April 2024.

A forensic interview was conducted at Project Harmony, during which L.R. stated that Castle had "done something bad" to her. She clarified that he had hurt her by touching her "private" part with his finger multiple times while changing her diaper at the hotel. A medical examination of L.R. was also performed by a nurse practitioner. L.R. told the nurse practitioner that Castle only touched the outside of her vagina.

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Following the trial but prior to the submission of the case to the jury, a jury instruction conference was held. During the conference, Castle objected to the court's proposed instruction which verbatim stated that "'[s]exual [p]enetration' shall mean any intrusion, however slight, into the genital or anal openings of a victim by any part of the [d]efendant's body which can be reasonably construed as being for non-medical, non-health, or non-law enforcement purposes." Castle submitted a proposed instruction which would have instructed the jury regarding the definition of "sexual penetration" using the exact statutory language provided by Neb. Rev. Stat. § 28-318 (Supp. 2025). The court, however, rejected Castle's proposed jury instruction and instructed the jury using its initial definition.

The Defendant was found guilty.

Affirmed