State v. Garner

834 P.2d 888, 122 Idaho 371, 1992 Ida. App. LEXIS 97
CourtIdaho Court of Appeals
DecidedApril 30, 1992
DocketNo. 19156
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 834 P.2d 888 (State v. Garner) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Idaho Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Garner, 834 P.2d 888, 122 Idaho 371, 1992 Ida. App. LEXIS 97 (Idaho Ct. App. 1992).

Opinion

SILAK, Judge.

Danny Russell Gamer entered a conditional plea of guilty to a felony charge of driving while under the influence of alcohol, and reserved the right to appeal from the district court’s denial of his motion for continuance. On appeal, Garner argues that the district court abused its discretion by denying the motion for a continuance. Garner also contends that, by denying his motion for a continuance, the district court violated his Sixth Amendment right to the effective assistance of counsel. For the reasons stated below, we affirm.

The facts of this case are as follows. Garner was arrested on April 24, 1990, and charged with the misdemeanors of driving under the influence of alcohol, driving with an expired license, driving without liability insurance, and resisting an officer. On May 1, 1990, a court-appointed public defender entered a plea of not guilty on Garner’s behalf. The magistrate set a jury trial for July 16, 1990.

On July 13, 1990, the prosecutor filed a complaint charging Gamer with felony driving under the influence pursuant to I.C. § 18-8005. Garner had pled guilty to two prior charges of driving under the influence of alcohol. The complaint alleged that the first plea of guilty was entered on October 9, 1985; the second plea was entered on April 6, 1987. Gamer was scheduled to appear on the felony charge on July 16, 1990, the same date set for the jury trial of the misdemeanor charges.

Gamer did not appear on July 16, 1990, because he had been hospitalized. Garner’s attorney filed a motion to continue which the district court granted. The court reset the date for the arraignment and the [373]*373trial on the misdemeanor charges for August 14, 1990. Gamer failed to appear for his arraignment. The district court issued a bench warrant for Gamer’s arrest. The warrant was quashed when the court learned that Gamer was in the hospital at the time of his arraignment and was unable to appear. On September 11, 1990, Garner appeared on the felony charge. On September 26, 1990, he waived his right to a preliminary hearing and was bound over to the district court.

Garner appeared for his arraignment on the felony charge in district court on Thursday, October 4, 1990. The district court advised Gamer of his rights and advised him of the different pleas he could enter. The court also advised Garner that he could enter a plea at the arraignment hearing but told Garner that he could take additional time to decide how he wanted to plead. Under I.C.R. 10(c), a criminal defendant must be allowed a reasonable time, which is defined as not less than one day, in which to answer the indictment or information.1 Garner waived the statutory time for entering a plea and pled not guilty.

The district court moved then to trial setting. Gamer’s counsel indicated that he wished to file a motion to dismiss the case. In order to obtain a felony DUI conviction under I.C. § 18-8005(3)2, the state must prove that the defendant was guilty of or pled guilty to three charges of driving under the influence within five years. State v. Bever, 118 Idaho 80, 82, 794 P.2d 1136, 1138 (1990) (felony DUI statute required three DUI convictions or guilty pleas within five years, rather than three violations within five years, for offender to be guilty of felony charge); see also State v. Garrett, 119 Idaho 878, 883, 811 P.2d 488, 493 (1991). Because Gamer pled guilty to the first DUI charge on October 9, 1985, he could not be convicted of a felony DUI charge unless his third conviction or guilty plea was entered before October 9, 1990.

Because the five-year time limitation would not run until October 9, 1990, the prosecutor requested a trial setting before that date. The following discussion took place on the record:

MS. NEILSON (the prosecutor): Well, we’re going to ask for a trial setting before the 9th____
THE COURT: Oh, [yes], it’s only the 4th, isn’t it?
MS. NEILSON: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: All right, we can try the case tomorrow, I guess.
MS. NEILSON: Yes, sir.
MR. FRACHISEUR (counsel for Gamer): I’m not prepared to try the case tomorrow, Your Honor.
THE COURT: Well, we’il have to go today, then.
MS. NEILSON: Monday — oh, you won’t be here Monday.
THE COURT: Monday is a holiday. It’s a non-judicial day, the 8th.
MS. NEILSON: I can probably get my officers for a court trial today, but that would—
THE COURT: Boy, talk about getting backed into a corner. Well, let’s get a jury and try it. I don’t know, we don’t have much choice____

After taking a recess, Gamer’s counsel told the district court that he was not prepared to defend the case at that time and moved that the case be set for trial no earlier than thirty days later. The court denied the motion, stating “although I understand and I usually am very considerate about giving [374]*374defense counsel adequate time to prepare, I don’t think it’s possible in this situation.”

Based on the district court’s denial of the motion, Gamer indicated that he wished to enter a plea of guilty, but reserved the right to appeal the court’s denial of the motion to continue. After questioning Garner regarding his knowledge of the consequences of his plea and the voluntary nature of his plea, the court accepted the plea of guilty. At the sentencing hearing in December, 1990, the court imposed a unified sentence of five years with a minimum period of confinement of two years. The court retained jurisdiction for 120 days and stayed the execution of the sentence pending the outcome of the appeal.

A denial of a motion for a continuance is not an abuse of discretion absent a showing that substantial rights of the defendant have been prejudiced. State v. Irving, 118 Idaho 673, 675, 799 P.2d 471, 473 (Ct.App.1990) (denial of motion for continuance not an abuse of discretion where defendant wanted continuance in order to file an untimely motion to suppress), citing State v. Laws, 94 Idaho 200, 202, 485 P.2d 144, 146 (1971). When an exercise of discretion is reviewed on appeal, the appellate court conducts a multi-tiered inquiry. The sequence of the inquiry is: (1) whether the lower court correctly perceived the issue as one of discretion; (2) whether the court acted within the outer boundaries of such discretion and consistently with any legal standards applicable to specific choices; and (3) whether the court reached its decision by an exercise of reason. Sun Valley Shopping Ctr. v. Idaho Power Co., 119 Idaho 87, 94, 803 P.2d 993, 1000 (1991); Associates Northwest, Inc. v. Beets, 112 Idaho 603, 605, 733 P.2d 824, 826 (Ct.App.1987).

Looking first to the legal standards applicable to this issue, the state has called our attention to I.C.

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

Related

State v. Saunders
859 P.2d 370 (Idaho Court of Appeals, 1993)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
834 P.2d 888, 122 Idaho 371, 1992 Ida. App. LEXIS 97, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-garner-idahoctapp-1992.