Nebraska Supreme Court Denies Cellphone Data Appeal
The court ruled that a precedent on digital location tracking does not apply retroactively to a 2019 murder conviction.
Updated on Oct. 29, 2026 in Criminal Justice
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The Nebraska Supreme Court has rejected an appeal from a man serving a prison sentence for a 2019 murder conviction involving cellphone tower dump data. Justices determined that a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on tracking evidence is not retroactive for already closed cases.
Why it matters
This decision clarifies the application of digital privacy precedents in Nebraska criminal proceedings. By limiting the retroactivity of recent federal rulings, the court maintains the finality of existing convictions where tower dump data was utilized.
Majdal Elias remains in state prison serving a sentence of 85 to 130 years for the 2019 killing of Ali Al-Burkat. The Nebraska Supreme Court officially affirmed the lower court's dismissal of the challenge to the evidence.
The players
Majdal Elias
He is a convicted murderer currently serving a prison sentence of 85 to 130 years in Nebraska.
Ali Al-Burkat
He was the 15-year-old victim who died from a gunshot wound in 2019.
Carlos Monzon
He is the attorney who presented arguments for the appeal before the state supreme court.
Jason Bergevin
He is a justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court who did not participate in this specific decision.
The details
Law enforcement initially gathered data from roughly 20,000 devices during a 30-minute window to identify suspects near the site of the shooting. Majdal Elias was later arrested in February 2020 after authorities connected security footage and the tower dump records to his phone.
Timeline
Ali Al-Burkat was killed in 2019.
Majdal Elias was arrested in February 2020.
The U.S. Supreme Court decided Chatrie v. United States in June 2026.
Attorney Carlos Monzon argued the case in September 2026.
The Nebraska Supreme Court issued its ruling in October 2026.
Legal Context
This ruling follows the precedent set by the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Chatrie v. United States regarding digital privacy. The state court specifically limited how this federal framework impacts previous convictions in Nebraska.
Residents in the area should note that this ruling confirms the state's current standards for evaluating digital evidence in older cases. It signals that existing legal finality is prioritized over the application of new federal procedural standards to closed criminal trials.
The takeaway
This case highlights the difficulty of applying evolving digital privacy standards to historical criminal evidence. Legal experts continue to monitor how courts distinguish between new protections and the finality of past judicial outcomes.
Further reading
For more on how state courts address procedural appeals, visit Criminal Justice.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Omaha World-Herald.
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