In re Tyriq. T.

CourtSupreme Court of Connecticut
DecidedAugust 19, 2014
DocketSC19153
StatusPublished

This text of In re Tyriq. T. (In re Tyriq. T.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Connecticut primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re Tyriq. T., (Colo. 2014).

Opinion

****************************************************** The ‘‘officially released’’ date that appears near the beginning of each opinion is the date the opinion will be published in the Connecticut Law Journal or the date it was released as a slip opinion. The operative date for the beginning of all time periods for filing postopinion motions and petitions for certification is the ‘‘officially released’’ date appearing in the opinion. In no event will any such motions be accepted before the ‘‘officially released’’ date. All opinions are subject to modification and technical correction prior to official publication in the Connecti- cut Reports and Connecticut Appellate Reports. In the event of discrepancies between the electronic version of an opinion and the print version appearing in the Connecticut Law Journal and subsequently in the Con- necticut Reports or Connecticut Appellate Reports, the latest print version is to be considered authoritative. The syllabus and procedural history accompanying the opinion as it appears on the Commission on Official Legal Publications Electronic Bulletin Board Service and in the Connecticut Law Journal and bound volumes of official reports are copyrighted by the Secretary of the State, State of Connecticut, and may not be repro- duced and distributed without the express written per- mission of the Commission on Official Legal Publications, Judicial Branch, State of Connecticut. ****************************************************** IN RE TYRIQ T.* (SC 19153) Rogers, C. J., and Palmer, Zarella, Eveleigh, McDonald, Espinosa and Robinson, Js.** Argued March 20—officially released August 19, 2014 Joshua Michtom, assistant public defender, with whom was Sharon Elias, assistant public defender, for the appellant (respondent). Nancy L. Chupak, senior assistant state’s attorney, with whom were Francis Carino, supervisory assistant state’s attorney, and, on the brief, Maureen Platt, state’s attorney, and John Davenport, supervisory assistant state’s attorney, for the appellee (state). Marsha L. Levick and Hannah Benton filed a brief for the National Center for Youth Law et al. as amici curiae. Opinion

ESPINOSA, J. In this certified appeal, we are called upon to decide whether a trial court’s interlocutory order granting a motion seeking a discretionary transfer of a respondent’s case from the docket for juvenile matters to the regular criminal docket of the Superior Court pursuant to General Statutes (Supp. 2014) § 46b- 127 (b) (1)1 is a final judgment for purposes of appeal. In the present case, the respondent, Tyriq T., appealed to the Appellate Court after his juvenile case was trans- ferred to the regular criminal docket pursuant to § 46b- 127 (b) (1). The Appellate Court dismissed the appeal for lack of a final judgment, and the respondent appealed to this court. We granted the respondent’s petition for certification, limited to the following ques- tion: ‘‘Did the Appellate Court properly dismiss the [respondent’s] appeal for lack of a final judgment?’’ In re Tyriq T., 309 Conn. 904, 68 A.3d 659 (2013). We answer the question in the affirmative, concluding that the clear intent of the legislature is to prohibit interlocu- tory appeals from discretionary transfer orders. Accord- ingly, we affirm the judgment of the Appellate Court. The record reveals the following relevant procedural background. The respondent, who was sixteen years old at the time of his arrest, was charged as a juvenile with carrying a pistol without a permit in violation of General Statutes (Rev. to 2011) § 29-35 (a), possession of a weapon in a motor vehicle in violation of General Statutes § 29-38, and theft of a firearm in violation of General Statutes § 53a-212. The state filed a motion to transfer his case to the regular criminal docket of the Superior Court at Waterbury and, pursuant to § 46b- 127, the trial court held a hearing over two days. After making the requisite factual findings, the court granted the state’s motion and ordered the respondent’s case to be transferred to the regular criminal docket. The respondent filed a timely appeal to the Appellate Court. Thereafter, the Appellate Court, sua sponte, ordered the parties to appear and argue whether the respondent’s appeal should be dismissed due to the lack of a final judgment.2 After a hearing, the court dismissed the respondent’s appeal.3 This certified appeal followed. On appeal, the respondent argues that it is clear that the legislature did not intend to prohibit interlocutory appeals of discretionary transfer orders because § 46b- 127 (b) is silent as to whether an interlocutory appeal can be taken from a discretionary transfer order. He maintains also that the genealogy of the discretionary transfer provision and language from a related provision in § 46b-127 that was added in 2010 support his posi- tion.4 Public Acts, Spec. Sess., June, 2010, No. 10-1, § 30 (adding subsection [f] to General Statutes [Supp. 2010] § 46b-127). In response, the state argues that the intent of the legislature to prohibit interlocutory appeals of discretionary transfer orders is evidenced by the dele- tion of the final judgment language from General Stat- utes (Rev. to 1993) § 46b-127. Public Acts, Spec. Sess., July, 1994, No. 94-2, § 6. We agree with the state that the legislature expressed a clear intent to prohibit the immediate appeal of discre- tionary transfer orders. As we explain herein, although the current statutory text of § 46b-127 does not resolve the question of whether a discretionary transfer order constitutes a final judgment for purposes of appeal, we conclude, on the basis of the genealogy of the transfer provisions, read together with this court’s interpreta- tion of the legislative intent evident from the prior amendments to those provisions, that under the current statutory language a discretionary transfer order cannot be immediately appealed. This interpretation of the dis- cretionary transfer provision results in a harmonious and consistent body of law with respect to all of the transfer provisions currently contained in § 46b-127. It is well settled that this court has subject matter jurisdiction only over appeals from final judgments. Abreu v. Leone, 291 Conn. 332, 338, 968 A.2d 385 (2009). ‘‘The legislature may, however, deem otherwise inter- locutory actions of the trial courts to be final judgments, as it has done by statute in limited circumstances. See, e.g., General Statutes § 31-118 (authorizing appeals from temporary injunctions in labor dispute); General Statutes § 52-278l (authorizing appeals from prejudg- ment remedies); see also W. Horton & K. Bartschi, [Con- necticut Practice Series: Connecticut Rules of Appellate Procedure (2009 Ed.)], §§ 61-2 through 61-11.’’ Abreu v. Leone, supra, 338. Because ‘‘[t]he right of appeal is purely statutory’’; State v. Curcio, 191 Conn. 27, 30, 463 A.2d 566 (1983); we must consider whether the legislature has deemed discretionary transfer orders final judgments. Whether the legislature intended discretionary trans- fer orders issued pursuant to § 46b-127 (b) (1) to be final judgments for purposes of appeal presents a question of statutory interpretation over which we exercise plenary review. See Ugrin v. Cheshire, 307 Conn. 364, 379, 54 A.3d 532 (2012). ‘‘When construing a statute, [o]ur fun- damental objective is to ascertain and give effect to the apparent intent of the legislature. . . . In other words, we seek to determine, in a reasoned manner, the mean- ing of the statutory language as applied to the facts of [the] case, including the question of whether the language actually does apply. . . . In seeking to deter- mine that meaning, General Statutes § 1-2z directs us first to consider the text of the statute itself and its relationship to other statutes.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Renaissance Management Co. v. Connecticut Housing Finance Authority
915 A.2d 290 (Supreme Court of Connecticut, 2007)
Abreu v. Leone
968 A.2d 385 (Supreme Court of Connecticut, 2009)
State v. Curcio
463 A.2d 566 (Supreme Court of Connecticut, 1983)
Thomas v. Department of Developmental Services
999 A.2d 682 (Supreme Court of Connecticut, 2010)
State v. Longo
469 A.2d 1220 (Supreme Court of Connecticut, 1984)
In re Juvenile Appeal (85-AB)
488 A.2d 778 (Supreme Court of Connecticut, 1985)
M. Dematteo Construction Co. v. City of New London
674 A.2d 845 (Supreme Court of Connecticut, 1996)
In re Daniel H.
678 A.2d 462 (Supreme Court of Connecticut, 1996)
In re Michael S.
784 A.2d 317 (Supreme Court of Connecticut, 2001)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
In re Tyriq. T., Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-tyriq-t-conn-2014.