State v. Azofeifa-Ramirez

Opinion

IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE

STATE OF DELAWARE ) ) v. ) ID No. 2502006448 ) BRYAN AZOFEIFA-RAMIREZ, ) ) Defendant. )

ORDER DENYING DEFENDANT’S CERTIFICATION OF AN INTERLOCUTORY APPEAL On this 12th day of March 2026, upon Defendant Bryan Azofeifa-Ramirez’s

Application for Certification of an Interlocutory Appeal (the “Application”),1 the

State’s response to the Application (the “Response”),2 and the record in this case, the

Court finds that:

1. On March 10, 2026, the Court issued its Opinion granting in part, and

denying in part, Defendant’s Motion to Suppress.3 In doing so, the Court decided an

important constitutional question: “whether the independent source doctrine can be

used to avoid suppression of evidence previously discovered pursuant to a general

warrant.”4

2. That same day, on March 10, 2026, Defendant filed his Application,

purportedly pursuant to Delaware Supreme Court Rule 42.5 Despite acknowledging

1 D.I. 39. 2 D.I. 40. 3 D.I. 38. 4 Id. at 3. 5 D.I. 39. 1 that “Delaware Supreme Court Rule 42 imposes strict procedural requirements

governing applications for interlocutory appeal,”6 Defendant failed to address the

Supreme Court’s ability to hear interlocutory appeals in criminal cases.

3. On March 12, 2026, the State filed Response. The State noted in its

response that the “Delaware Supreme Court does not have jurisdiction to entertain an

interlocutory appeal in criminal cases.”7

4. The Supreme Court of Delaware has made clear on numerous occasions

that “Under the Delaware Constitution, the [Supreme] Court ‘does not have jurisdiction

to hear an interlocutory appeal in a criminal case.’”8 Rather, the Supreme Court may

only review a final judgment in a criminal case.9 Thus, “the Supreme Court could not

review the Court’s interlocutory order, even if the Court certified the appeal.”10

5. For these reasons, the Application is DENIED.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Original to Prothonotary cc: Cassandra M. Balascak, Esquire, DAG Alicia Ann Porter, Esquire

6 Id. at 1. 7 D.I. 40 (citing Gottleib v. State, 697 A.2d 400 (Del. 1997) and State v. Cooley, 430 A.2d 789 (Del. 1981)). 8 Matter of Taylor, 2023 WL 8379200, at *2 (Del. Dec. 5, 2023). 9 Bacon v. State, 2024 WL 4367441, at *1 (Del. Oct. 1, 2024) (citation omitted). 10 Johnson v. State, 2013 WL 3004063, at *1 (Del. Super. May 20, 2013). 2