Cothren v. State, 2012 WY 102

Appellant Jerele Craig Co-thren, Jr. faces four sentences from three counties for unrelated crimes; the current appeal concerns the most recent Natrona County sentence.
Between 2007 and 2010, Natrona County sentenced him to 2–4 years (larceny by bailee) suspended to 3 years probation (2007).
Sheridan County sentenced him in 2009 to five counts of forgery and one count of identity theft to 5–8 years each, to run concurrently.
Platte County in 2009 sentenced him to 2–5 years for livestock rustling, suspended to 5 years probation.
In 2010, Natrona probation was revoked and he was ordered to serve 2–4 years; the Natrona sentencing at issue required the eight-to-ten year sentence to be concurrent with Sheridan and consecutive to Natrona and Platte sentences.
The Natrona County district court ordered the second Natrona sentence to be served consecutive to the first Natrona sentence, concurrent with the Sheridan sentence, and consecutive to the Platte County probation; this structure is deemed illegal.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the sentence at issue is illegal.	Co-thren argues the second Natrona sentence cannot be served concurrently with an ongoing sentence and consecutive to a future probation.	The district court held the sentence compliant with the plea agreement and not illegal.	Yes, the sentence is illegal and remanded for resentencing.

Endris v. State, 2010 WY 73 (Wyo.2010) (probation cannot be imposed concurrently with incarceration absent specific legislation)
White v. Pearlman, 42 F.2d 788 (10th Cir.1930) (continuous sentence; interruptions not allowed unless fault of prisoner)
Daugherty v. State, 2002 WY 52 (Wyo.2002) (courts may only impose sentences authorized by legislature)
Moronese v. State, 2012 WY 34 (Wyo.2012) (legal standard for sentence legality de novo review)
Turner v. State, 551 So.2d 1247 (Fla.Dist.Ct.App.1989) (consecutive incarceration cannot be interrupted by probation)