Wood v. People, 255 P.3d 1136

In 2006, Wood was convicted of manslaughter for fatally shooting a person during a drug transaction in his apartment.
Wood previously moved pretrial for immunity under the make-my-day statute, § 18-1-704.5, which the trial court denied.
On direct appeal, Wood challenged the pretrial denial of immunity; the court of appeals declined to review the pretrial order.
Colorado Supreme Court granted certiorari to determine whether a pretrial denial of immunity is reviewable on appeal after trial.
The statute provides facial immunity if certain factual conditions are met, potentially justifying pretrial dismissal; Guenther clarified the nature of make-my-day immunity as conditional immunity.
The Court held that pretrial immunity rulings are not reviewable on appeal after trial, and review must occur under C.A.R. 21 before trial.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether pretrial denial of immunity is reviewable on appeal after trial	Wood contends denial implicates jurisdiction and is reviewable anytime	People argues no appellate review after trial; review available via CAR 21 pretrial	Not reviewable on appeal after trial
Whether the trial court lacked subject matter jurisdiction to hear immunity	Immunity precludes prosecution and affects jurisdiction	Jurisdiction exists; make-my-day immunity is not jurisdiction-stripping	Trial court had subject matter jurisdiction; denial not a jurisdictional defect
Whether pretrial immunity is analogous to a preliminary hearing and thus not final	Pretrial ruling is final in effect and should be reviewable	Pretrial ruling is nonfinal and moot after trial; review should occur pretrial	Pretrial immunity ruling is like a preliminary ruling and not final post-trial
What is the proper avenue for review of a pretrial immunity denial	Immediate or post-trial review should be available	Review should occur under C.A.R. 21 before trial; post-trial review is inappropriate	Review must be sought under C.A.R. 21 before trial; post-trial appeal is not proper

Guenther, 740 P.2d 971 (Colo. 1987) (immunity under make-my-day is conditional immunity; supports pretrial dismissal)
Janes, 962 P.2d 315 (Colo. App. 1998) (pretrial immunity issues discussed; not explicit on appealability)
McMurtry, 122 P.3d 237 (Colo. 2005) (distinguished subject matter jurisdiction from general jurisdiction; speedy trial dismissal not divesting jurisdiction)
Nichelson, 219 P.3d 1064 (Colo. 2009) (probable cause at preliminary hearing moot after conviction; parallels to make-my-day review post-trial)
Paul, 105 P.3d 628 (Colo. 2005) (pretrial review available under CAR 21 to avoid delaying prosecution)
Kuypers, 188 Colo. 332, 534 P.2d 1204 (Colo. 1975) (CAR 21 review appropriate for preliminary hearing determinations)
E.J.R. v. Dist. Court, 892 P.2d 222 (Colo. 1995) (review principles for nonfinal orders; context for pretrial rulings)