State v. Lange

• Court: Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeals
• Decided: February 7, 2024
• Docket: CAAP-23-0000680
• Status: Published

Opinion

NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER

Electronically Filed Intermediate Court of Appeals CAAP-XX-XXXXXXX 07-FEB-2024 08:28 AM Dkt. 32 OGMD NO. CAAP-XX-XXXXXXX

IN THE INTERMEDIATE COURT OF APPEALS

OF THE STATE OF HAWAI I

STATE OF HAWAI I, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. UTTARA DASI LANGE, Defendant-Appellee

APPEAL FROM THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE SECOND CIRCUIT (CASE NO. 2CPC-XX-XXXXXXX)

ORDER GRANTING MOTION TO DISMISS APPEAL (By: Leonard, Acting Chief Judge, Nakasone and McCullen, JJ.) Upon consideration of Defendant-Appellee Uttara Dasi Lange's (Lange) January 24, 2024 Motion to Dismiss Appeal, the papers in support and in opposition, and the record, it appears that: (1) On October 5, 2023, the Circuit Court of the Second Circuit (Circuit Court) entered a "Proposed Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law for [Lange]'s Motion to Dismiss" (Dismissal Order) dismissing the charges in the underlying case; (2) On October 20, 2023, the Circuit Court entered an "Amended Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law for [Lange]'s Motion to Dismiss" (Amended Dismissal Order), with the only change being the inclusion of case number references in the findings of fact; (3) On November 16, 2023, Plaintiff-Appellant State of Hawai i (State) filed a notice of appeal from the Amended Dismissal Order, pursuant to Hawaii Revised Statutes § 641-13(1) (2016); (4) Lange seeks dismissal of the appeal for lack of jurisdiction, arguing that the time to appeal ran from entry of NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER

the Dismissal Order, and therefore, the notice of appeal was not timely filed in accordance with Hawai i Rules of Appellate Procedure (HRAP) Rule 4(b)(1); (5) Because the order was not "amended in a material and substantial respect," the 30-day deadline to appeal under HRAP Rule 4(b)(1) ran from entry of the Dismissal Order, not the Amended Dismissal Order, see State v. Mainaaupo, 117 Hawai i 235, 246 n.6, 178 P.3d 1, 12 n.6 (2008) (citation omitted); Weisenberg v. University of Hawai i, 138 Hawai i 210, 216, 378 P.3d 926, 932 (2016); thus, the State's appeal is untimely; and (6) Compliance with the requirement of timely filing a notice of appeal is jurisdictional. Grattafiori v. State, 79 Hawai i 10, 13, 897 P.2d 937, 940 (1995). Therefore, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the motion is granted, and the appeal is dismissed. DATED: Honolulu, Hawai i, February 7, 2024.

/s/ Katherine G. Leonard Acting Chief Judge

/s/ Karen T. Nakasone Associate Judge

/s/ Sonja M.P. McCullen Associate Judge