Supreme Court of Delaware

Willis v. State

July 24, 2023

Summary

The Court affirmed Willis's convictions, holding that the trial judge was not required to recuse himself merely because he had previously approved a search warrant during the investigation. The Court clarified that the subjective recusal inquiry is reviewed for abuse of discretion, while the objective appearance-of-bias inquiry is reviewed de novo, and concluded that the warrant approval did not create an objectively reasonable doubt about the judge's impartiality.