State v. TateState v. Tate
DEFENDANT’S APPEAL
{¶ 1} Defendant-appellant, Terrance Tate, has filed a pretrial appeal of the trial court’s denial of his motion for discharge under
{¶ 2} A one-year-old child was admitted to the hospital with blunt-force injuries. After appellant confessed to hitting the child, the child died. Appellant was then indicted for aggravated murder with a death specification. In August 2007, the Mahoning County Common Pleas Court suppressed the confession due to an untimely waiver of Miranda rights. The state filed a timely “appeal as of right” under R.C. 2945.67(A) and
{¶ 3} In appealing to our court, the state certified under
{¶ 4} “If an appeal pursuant to this division results in an affirmance of the trial court, the state shall be barred from prosecuting the defendant for the same offense or offenses except upon a showing of newly discovered evidence that the state could not, with reasonable diligence, have discovered before filing of the notice of appeal.”
{¶ 5} After a hearing on appellant’s motion, the trial court filed a September 8, 2008 judgment entry, finding that the prosecution had demonstrated that it was in possession of newly discovered evidence that it could not, with reasonable diligence, have discovered before appealing the suppression decision. The court pointed to various pieces of evidence, including the recent discovery of telephone calls from appellant to his mother, letters written to the prior trial judge but not provided to the state, and an inmate’s claim that appellant confessed to him. The court disagreed with appellant’s contention that the state should have discovered the evidence prior to its appeal, noting that when the state’s initial strategy is to rely on a confession, it is not required to keep investigating all other incriminating avenues.
{¶ 6} Appellant filed a timely notice of appeal on October 8, 2008. The state filed a motion to dismiss on jurisdictional grounds due to the interlocutory nature
{¶ 7} This statute lists categories of final, appealable orders, the first four of which are:
{¶ 8} “(1) An order that affects a substantial right in an action that in effect determines the action and prevents a judgment;
{¶ 9} “(2) An order that affects a substantial right made in a special proceeding or upon a summary application in an action after judgment;
{¶ 10} “(3) An order that vacates or sets aside a judgment or grants a new trial;
{¶ 11} “(4) An order that grants or denies a provisional remedy and to which both of the following apply:
{¶ 12} “(a) The order in effect determines the action with respect to the provisional remedy and prevents a judgment in the action in favor of the appealing party with respect to the provisional remedy.
{¶ 13} “(b) The appealing party would not be afforded a meaningful or effective remedy by an appeal following final judgment as to all proceedings, issues, claims, and parties in the action.” R.C. 2505.02(B).
{¶ 14} A footnote in appellant’s brief states that he is claiming applicability of (B)(1), (2), and (4). He does not then set forth any argument regarding division (B)(1), and that claim is easily countered. Regardless of whether a substantial right is affected, the order here not does determine the action and prevent judgment. Cf. R.C. 2505.02(B)(4)(a) (modifying similar language by adding “with respect to the provisional remedy).” The order “must dispose of the whole merits of the cause or some separate and distinct branch thereof and leave nothing for the determination of the court.”
Natl. City Commercial Capital Corp. v. AAAA At Your Serv., Inc.,
{¶ 15} Appellant also argues that the trial court’s order denying discharge under
{¶ 16} Appellant points out that the Supreme Court once held that suppression is a special proceeding under R.C. 2505.02, in a case allowing a state’s appeal at a
{¶ 17} Regarding appellant’s citation of
Collins,
we merely point out that the portion of the
Collins
holding relied upon by appellant was abrogated by more recent case law and was decided prior to the 1998 amendments to R.C. 2505.02, which statutorily defined special proceedings. After
Collins,
the Supreme Court altered its position on special proceedings by announcing that reviewing courts do not scrutinize the nature of the order to determine whether that order was made in a special proceeding.
Walters v. Enrichment Ctr. of Wishing Well, Inc.
(1997),
{¶ 18} This principle has been reaffirmed even after the July 1, 1998 amendment to R.C. 2505.02, which provided the statutory definitions and added other categories of final orders.
Stevens v. Ackman
(2001),
{¶ 19} Here, appellant points to no statute creating the right he seeks to enforce. Rather, he points to
{¶ 20} We now turn to appellant’s claim that the order is appealable under R.C. 2505.02(B)(4) as a provisional remedy. A provisional remedy is a proceeding ancillary to an action, including, but not limited to, a proceeding for a preliminary injunction, attachment, discovery of privileged matter, suppression of evidence, or a prima-facie showing in order to maintain asbestos litigation. R.C. 2505.02(A)(3). To be a provisional remedy, the remedy sought must be attendant upon or aid the underlying action.
State v. Muncie
(2001),
{¶ 21} A motion to dismiss does not aid or accompany the criminal action. Rather, it is a claim for relief that seeks to terminate the action. See
Community First Bank & Trust v. Dafoe,
{¶ 22} We acknowledge that the Supreme Court did not use this rationale in addressing the status of a civil motion to dismiss based upon
{¶ 23} Still, appellant’s motion to dismiss the charges or for discharge in this case is also derived from a procedural rule that does not require automatic dismissal and that allows the state to show that it has newly discovered evidence that could not have been discovered in time for the state’s prior appeal in the exercise of reasonable diligence. This equates with the scenario in
Manley.
Thus, we hold that a motion to dismiss a criminal ease under
{¶ 24} Even assuming that the motion could satisfy the definition of a provisional remedy, the remainder of the provisional-remedy test is not met here.
{¶ 25} For comparison, we review the results of other cases where the court found that the order appealed did not deprive the defendant of a meaningful or effective remedy by an appeal after final judgment. This court has held that the defendant is afforded a meaningful or effective remedy for the denial of his suppression motion by an appeal following final judgment. See, e.g.,
State v. Lebron
(Nov. 22, 1999), 7th Dist. No. 99CA35,
{¶ 26} In
Lebrón,
we found that “any issue surrounding the trial court’s judgment overruling the appellant’s motion to suppress evidence will continue to exist until the criminal trial is concluded.” Id., citing
State v. Jones
(Jan. 29, 1999), 11th Dist. No. 98-P-0116,
{¶ 27} As aforementioned, the Supreme Court in addressing whether suppression affects a substantial right mentioned that, unlike the state, the defendant can effectively challenge a denial of suppression following his conviction.
State v. Collins,
{¶ 28} For a different example, this court has held that the denial of a motion to dismiss on double jeopardy grounds is not a final order under R.C. 2505.02(B)(4)(b).
State v. Hubbard
(1999),
{¶ 30} The Fourth District has found our reasoning in
Hubbard
persuasive and similarly held that there is meaningful and effective review of the denial of a motion to dismiss on double jeopardy grounds after conviction.
State v. Prokos
(May 31, 2000), 4th Dist. No. 00CA02,
{¶ 31} We now consider whether our
Hubbard
position is still valid, after certain recent Supreme Court decisions concerning provisional remedies. Two cases are most relevant. In one case, a criminal defendant, who was found incompetent before trial, was ordered to be forcibly medicated in order to restore competency.
State v. Muncie
(2001),
{¶ 32} The
Muncie
court provided other examples that would qualify as final orders. For instance, the court agreed that an order compelling the production of trade secrets was a final order because the cloak of secrecy could not be restored after final judgment. Id. at 451,
{¶ 33} A few years after
Muncie,
a criminal defendant, who was found incompetent before trial, was ordered to be committed to a mental institution for restoration of competency.
State v. Upshaw,
{¶ 35} In
Upshaw
an appeal after conviction would have been moot because the commitment for incompetency would be over; whereas here, a successful appeal after conviction, if that is the final result, will overturn that conviction. See
Youngstown v. Ortiz,
{¶ 36} Therefore, we do not believe that the
Upshaw
rationale applies to a case such as appellant’s for the mere reason that he cannot make bail or for his alternate reason that he will have to proceed through a trial (or plead) in order to have his
{¶ 37} In conclusion, the order does not determine the action and prevent judgment under R.C. 2505.02(B)(1). The order was not made in a special proceeding under R.C. 2505.02(B)(2). The order did not deny a provisional remedy, as dismissal is not in aid of or accompanying a criminal action; rather, it is the termination of the action, at least where, as in Manley, a procedural rule provides that dismissal is not automatic. Moreover, appellant is not denied a meaningful or effective remedy by the delay in review as required by R.C. 2505.02(B)(3).
{¶ 38} Accordingly, the trial court’s denial of a motion for discharge under
STATE OF OHIO’S CROSS-APPEAL
{¶ 39} The state previously lost an appeal to this court regarding the trial court’s suppression of evidence in the criminal case against defendant Tate.
{¶ 40} On September 8, 2008, the trial court denied the state’s motion. On October 17, 2008, the state filed a motion for leave to appeal the trial court’s order. The state framed its appeal as a cross-appeal, since defendant Tate had appealed the denial of his motion for discharge, which order was also contained in the September 8, 2008 judgment entry. Defendant’s appeal was timely filed on October 8, 2008. The state apparently believes that its appeal is timely as a cross-appeal. However, for the following reasons, the state’s appeal is untimely.
{¶ 41} Pursuant to
{¶ 42} According to
{¶ 43} However,
{¶ 45} “(C) Motion by prosecution for leave to appeal.
{¶ 46} “When leave is sought by the prosecution from the court of appeals to appeal a judgment or order of the trial court,
a motion for leave to appeal shall be filed with the court of appeals within thirty days from the entry of the judgment and order sought to be appealed
and shall set forth the errors that the movant claims occurred in the proceedings of the trial court. The motion shall be accompanied by affidavits, or by the parts of the record upon which the movant relies, to show the probability that the errors claimed did in fact occur, and by a brief or memorandum of law in support of the movant’s claims. Concurrently with the filing of the motion, the movant shall file with the clerk of the trial court a notice of appeal in the form prescribed by
{¶ 47} The decision to grant or deny the state’s motion for leave to appeal is solely within the discretion of the appellate court.
State v. Matthews
(1998),
{¶ 48} Initially, we point out that it is only regarding the form of the notice of appeal for which
{¶ 49} Even
{¶ 50} Similarly, there can be no argument regarding the exception for failure of service within three days in a civil case. See docket (the clerk noted service of September 8, 2008 judgment on September 23, 2008). See also
{¶ 51} Because the state failed to file its motion for leave to appeal and its accompanying notice of appeal within 30 days of the entry of the September 8, 2008 judgment, our jurisdiction was never properly invoked. See, e.g.,
State v. Mitchell,
6th Dist. L-03-1270,
{¶ 52} The state’s motion for leave to appeal is hereby denied, and its notice of appeal is hereby dismissed. Pending motions are dismissed as moot.
{¶ 53} Both parties are to pay their costs.
Judgment accordingly.