Walls v. State, 300, 2016

Background

Joseph Walls, serving life with parole possible plus 89 years for two separate 1986–1987 home invasion convictions (Criminal ID Nos. 86013001DI and 86001399DI), appealed the Superior Court’s denial of motions for time-served credit, medical parole, and reargument.
In April 2015 Walls sought correction of the effective start date for one sentence (86013001DI) from May 25, 1987 to January 24, 1986 to obtain additional credit for time served. He acknowledged prior incarcerations and multiple shorter sentences imposed in early/mid-1986. The DOC confirmed existing credits and the May 25, 1987 effective date.
Walls also moved for medical parole or sentence modification under 11 Del. C. § 4346 and § 4217 to receive treatment for PTSD at a VA hospital, and sought Veterans Treatment Court relief.
He later amended and supplemented his Rule 35 filings to assert additional claims: (a) that the PDWDCF sentence was illegal under Davis v. State when the underlying felony was Robbery in the First Degree; (b) that a baseball bat is not a deadly weapon so PDWDCF could not stand; and (c) insufficiency of evidence for First- and Second-Degree Kidnapping convictions.
The Superior Court denied relief: found no additional credit due given other overlapping sentences; held it had no authority to grant parole or to modify via Veterans Treatment Court (which excludes violent offenders); and ruled the newly asserted claims attacked convictions (not sentence legality) and thus were improper under Rule 35(a).

Issues

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (Walls)	Defendant's Argument (State)	Held
Effective start date / credit for time served on 86013001DI	Effective date should be Jan 24, 1986 because Walls was first incarcerated then, entitling him to more credit	DOC and Superior Court: Walls received credit for overlapping earlier sentences; existing effective date (May 25, 1987) is correct	Denied — Walls was not entitled to additional credit because earlier Level V time and intervening sentences accounted for the period claimed
Legality of PDWDCF sentence under Davis v. State	PDWDCF sentence illegal where underlying felony was Robbery in the First Degree (per Davis)	Walls was charged with PDWDCF based on Assault in the Second Degree, not Robbery; claim attacks conviction/jury instruction, not sentence	Denied — claim challenges conviction/jury instruction and falls outside Rule 35(a); should be pursued under Rule 61
Bat not a deadly weapon / insufficiency of kidnapping evidence	A baseball bat is not a deadly weapon; State failed to prove elements of Kidnapping I and II	These arguments attack the sufficiency of convictions, not sentence legality	Denied — substantive challenges to convictions are outside Rule 35(a) and are governed by Rule 61
Medical parole / Veterans Treatment Court / Rule 35 timeliness	Superior Court should refer/modify sentence under Veterans Treatment Court or recommend medical parole under § 4346/modify under § 4217 for PTSD treatment	Veterans Court excludes violent offenders; Walls’s motion is untimely under Rule 35(b) and no DOC application under § 4217 was filed; Superior Court lacks authority to grant parole	Denied — Veterans Program inapplicable; motion time-barred absent extraordinary circumstances; DOC did not apply under § 4217; parole authority rests with Board of Parole

Key Cases Cited

Davis v. State, 400 A.2d 292 (Del. 1979) (held at the time that a defendant could not be sentenced for both Attempted Robbery in the First Degree and PDWDCF)
LeCompte v. State, 516 A.2d 898 (Del. 1986) (overruled Davis in relevant respects)
State v. LeCompte, 538 A.2d 1102 (Del. 1988) (addressed retroactivity and application of LeCompte changes)
Hunter v. State, 430 A.2d 476 (Del. 1981) (permitted sentencing for both Assault in the First Degree and PDWDCF where appropriate)
Brittingham v. State, 705 A.2d 577 (Del. 1998) (explaining Rule 35(a) has a narrow function: to correct illegal sentences, not to reexamine trial errors)
Walls v. State, 560 A.2d 1038 (Del. 1989) (prior appeal addressing Walls’s convictions)