Blackwell v. State

1 S.W.3d 399, 338 Ark. 671, 1999 Ark. LEXIS 514
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedOctober 7, 1999
DocketCR 98-456
StatusPublished
Cited by30 cases

This text of 1 S.W.3d 399 (Blackwell v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Blackwell v. State, 1 S.W.3d 399, 338 Ark. 671, 1999 Ark. LEXIS 514 (Ark. 1999).

Opinion

Tom Glaze, Justice.

Appellant Dr. Robert Earl Blackwell, a Pine Bluff dentist, brings this appeal from a Pulaski County Circuit Court jury conviction. Blackwell was found guilty of violating the Arkansas Medicaid Fraud Act, Ark. Code Ann. §§ 5-55-101, et seq. (Repl. 1997). Blackwell was sentenced to 60 months’ imprisonment, ordered to pay a fine of $66,246.60, and directed to make restitution in the amount of $21,082.20. We have jurisdiction of this case under Ark. Sup. Ct. R. 1-2(b)(1) and (6) (1999), because it involves issues of first impression and the interpretation of the State’s Medicaid Fraud Act. Blackwell does not question the sufficiency of the evidence from which the jury found him guilty. Instead, Blackwell raises three points for reversal, wherein he claims that (1) his right to speedy trial was violated, (2) he was tried in the wrong county and jurisdiction, and (3) his Fourth Amendment rights were violated by the State’s search and seizure of his business.

In his speedy-trial argument, Blackwell submits that he was entitled to have his charge dismissed under Ark. R. Crim. P. 28.1 and 28.2, since he was not brought to trial within twelve months (365 days) from when he was charged. In his situation, 785 days had elapsed between when he was charged and brought to trial. Thus, under Rules 28.1 and 28.2, Blackwell’s date of trial commenced 420 days after when trial should have begun, unless his trial date had been correctly extended for periods of necessary delay established or authorized in Rule 28.3. He concedes that 220 of the 420 days were chargeable to him and excludable under the provisions of Rule 28.3.1 Even so, he argues, the State was still 200 days late in bringing him to trial, and the State failed to meet its burden to demonstrate that those 200 days were excludable under Rule 28.3. See Morgan v. State, 333 Ark. 294, 299, 971 S.W.2d 219, 221 (1998). Blackwell is mistaken.

The State submits that, while Blackwell claims that the State was 200 days late in commencing his trial, Blackwell fails to recognize 221 days’ delay that are attributable to Blackwell. Those 221 days bring his trial well within the speedy-trial period required under Rule 28.

First, Blackwell was given a mental evaluation, and it took 95 days to obtain the report. While on appeal Blackwell claims this 95-day period was not excludable and should be attributed to the State, he took the opposite position at trial. When the subject was addressed at trial, defense counsel said, “With respect to the Act III evaluation, your honor, that is excludable as a matter of law. That is the 95 days and that is excludable under state law.” Flaving conceded the exclusion of the 95-day period at trial, Blackwell may not complain of its exclusion on appeal. See Jones v. State, 329 Ark. 603, 951 S.W.2d 308 (1997).

Second, Blackwell claims a 126-day period he believes is attributable to the State and is not excludable under Rule 28.3. Again, we disagree. Blackwell exhibited some difficulty in working with counsel; he had three attorneys, two of whom withdrew with the court’s permission. At one stage, trial had been set for October 29, 1996, and an omnibus hearing was held on October 7, 1996, so the parties could ready themselves for trial. Instead, Blackwell announced at the hearing that his second counsel had betrayed him, he was afraid of her, he believed she had failed to do any of the things a prudent attorney would have done, and he could not work with her. There was considerable colloquy between the trial court, Blackwell, his attorney, and the State regarding who would or could represent Blackwell. The trial court and counsel discussed the complexities of the case and how difficult it would be for new counsel to be prepared for the scheduled October 29, 1996 trial. As a result, the trial court appointed the public defender’s office to represent Blackwell and reset the trial date to February 10, 1997. The trial court announced it was charging the 126-day delay to Blackwell because of the problems he had with his counsel. The trial court was correct.

Rule 28.3(h) generally provides that periods of delay for good cause are excluded in computing the time for defendant’s speedy trial. This court has held that when a delay results from the need for the appointment of new counsel, such appointment is excludable for good cause. See Lynch v. State, 315 Ark. 47, 863 S.W.2d 838 (1993); Glover v. State, 307 Ark. 1, 817 S.W.2d 409 (1991). Here, because appointment of new counsel was required as a result of Blackwell’s inability to work with his (second) counsel and because the State’s case involved a “massive” amount of documents, the trial court’s action in ordering a continuance to permit new counsel additional time to prepare for trial was a delay for good cause attributable against Blackwell under Rule 28.3(h).

We next turn to Blackwell’s second issue, wherein he contends he was deprived of his right to trial in Jefferson County where he asserts the crime occurred. Blackwell relies on Ark. Code Ann. § 16-88-105(b) (1987), which in relevant part provides, “[T]he local jurisdiction of circuit courts shall be of offenses committed within the respective counties in which they are held.” He further cites Ark. Const, art. 2, § 10, which reads that an accused is entitled to trial by an impartial jury located in the county in which the crime was committed. Blackwell argues that all of the acts the State claims were illegal occurred in Pine Bluff, where Blackwell’s dental practice is located, patients resided, and billings originated. Blackwell further submits that, while his Medicaid billings were submitted to the state agency in Little Rock for payments, such acts provided an insufficient nexus to bring charges against him in the Pulaski County Circuit Court.

Blackwell’s argument is inconsistent with Ark. Code Ann. § 16-88-108(c) (1987). That provision reads as follows:

Where the offense is committed partly in one county and partly in another, or the acts, or effects thereof, requisite to the consummation of the offense occur in two or more counties, the jurisdiction is in either county.

See also Barr v. State, 336 Ark. 220, 984 S.W.2d 792 (1999).

A person commits Medicaid fraud under Arkansas’s Act when he “purposely makes or causes to be made a false statement or representation of a material fact in any application for any benefit or payment under the Arkansas Medicaid Program.” Ark. Code Ann. § 5-55-111(1) (Repl. 1997). Here, the State charged Blackwell in Pulaski County with violating § 5-5-111(1), by alleging he unlawfully, feloniously, and purposely made or caused false statements or representations when applying for benefits or payments under the Arkansas Medicaid Program. While Blackwell’s dental practice was located in Pine Bluff and he treated patients there, his offense was consummated by submitting fraudulent billings to Arkansas’s State Medicaid Agency (Department of Human Services) located in Little Rock. Moreover, it was in Little Rock where the state agency denied or authorized Blackwell’s Medicaid claims. Clearly, Blackwell’s acts took effect in Pulaski County where the Medicaid agency received and processed Blackwell’s fraudulent bills.

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Bluebook (online)
1 S.W.3d 399, 338 Ark. 671, 1999 Ark. LEXIS 514, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/blackwell-v-state-ark-1999.