State v. Lara

2003 UT App 318, 79 P.3d 951, 483 Utah Adv. Rep. 5, 2003 Utah App. LEXIS 94, 2003 WL 22208354
CourtCourt of Appeals of Utah
DecidedSeptember 25, 2003
Docket20010484-CA
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 2003 UT App 318 (State v. Lara) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Utah primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Lara, 2003 UT App 318, 79 P.3d 951, 483 Utah Adv. Rep. 5, 2003 Utah App. LEXIS 94, 2003 WL 22208354 (Utah Ct. App. 2003).

Opinions

OPINION

JACKSON, Presiding Judge:

' 1 Appellant Miguel Angel Lara appeals a judgment of conviction for theft, a second-degree felony, in violation of Utah Code Ann. § 76-6-404 (1999). We reverse and remand.

BACKGROUND

12 Lara was charged in juvenile court with aggravated robbery. Lara was sixteen at the time of the offense. Pursuant to Utah Code Ann. § 78-82-6022 (2002) (Serious Youth Offender Act), the juvenile court determined that Lara had not shown by clear and convincing evidence that he met all three of the statutory retention conditions, which would have permitted the juvenile court to retain jurisdiction. See id. § 78-8a2-602(8)(b). Thus, on January 2, 2001, the juvenile court bound Lara over for trial in district court to be tried as an adult.

T3 On January 22, 2001, Lara moved the district court to transfer him from the county jail to the juvenile detention center while his case was pending. The district court granted the motion. On the same day, Lara moved the district court to quash the juvenile court's bindover order. He did not challenge the juvenile court's finding of probable cause to believe that he had committed aggravated robbery. Instead, he challenged the juvenile court's ruling that he had not met the requisite retention factors by clear and convincing evidence. The State responded that because the juvenile court's bindover order was final and appealable, it was not reviewable by the district court. Instead, the State contended, the only proper venue for challenging the juvenile court's order was to appeal to the court of appeals. Lara filed an appeal in this court on January 31, 2001, challenging the juvenile court's bindover order.

4 On February 5, 2001, the district court held a hearing on Lara's motion to quash. Initially, the district court believed it retained jurisdiction to address the motion, heard argument on the motion and considered its merit. Ultimately, however, the district court said that it could not review the bindover order while an appeal from that order was pending. The district court asked defense counsel whether he was considering withdrawing the appeal, and defense counsel stated his preference that the district court review the bindover order. Defense counsel asked whether Lara could withdraw the appeal without prejudice, and the district court judge responded, "You have met the time constraints. You can appeal it after the trial, as you point out. You can appeal at any point in the interim. I guess you could wait for my decision and then appeal it.... I would say you withdraw it without prejudice."

15 The State reminded the district court that it did not have jurisdiction to review the bindover order and that Lara's only available remedy was to obtain appellate review from the court of appeals.

16 On February 14, 2001, Lara filed a motion with this court to voluntarily dismiss his appeal. The motion was accompanied by Lara's affidavit stating that he did not wish to pursue his appeal and that he understood that "onee this appeal is withdrawn, it cannot be reinstated." The motion did not ask that the dismissal be without prejudice. We dismissed the appeal pursuant to Lara's motion on February 15, 2001.

T7 On March 6, 2001, the district court issued a memorandum decision stating that it did not have jurisdiction to review the juvenile court's bindover order. Subsequent to that memorandum decision, Lara filed no motion with this court to reinstate his appeal.

T8 On March 30, 2001, Lara pleaded guilty to the lesser offense of second-degree felony theft on the condition that he be permitted to appeal the juvenile court's bindover order. On May 80, 2001, Lara filed a notice of appeal from his conviction and sentence.

[953]*953ISSUES AND STANDARDS OF REVIEW

T9 Lara challenges the juvenile court's bindover order pursuant to the Serious Youth Offender Act, arguing that he met the retention factors set forth in Utah Code Ann. § 78-3a2-602(8)(b) (2002). The interpretation of a statute presents a question of law that we review for correctness, and any underlying factual findings made by the juvenile judge in applying the statute are reviewed for clear error. See State v. Pena, 869 P.2d 932, 936 (Utah 1994).

T10 The State contends that this court does not have jurisdiction to entertain Lara's first challenge because the direct appeal from the juvenile court's bindover order was dismissed and not timely reinstated. Whether a court has subject matter jurisdiction is a question of law that we review for correct, ness. See Beaver County v. Qwest, Inc., 2001 UT 81,¶ 8, 31 P.3d 1147.

ANALYSIS

111 Lara asks us to review the juvenile court's bindover order using one of three possible approaches: (1) by reinstating his direct appeal from the juvenile court's bind-over order; (2) by reviewing the district court's determination that it had jurisdiction over Lara; or (8) by considering Lara's request for extraordinary relief.1

I. Reinstatement of Dismissed Appeal

T12 We must first address the State's claim that we do not have jurisdiction to entertain Lara's direct challenge to the juvenile court's bindover order. The State first relies on State v. Houskeeper, 2002 UT 118, 62 P.3d 444, for the proposition that once a case is bound over to district court, an appellate court will have no jurisdiction to hear the challenge unless that order is timely appealed. It is true that the procedural posture of Houskeeper is strikingly similar to the case at bar. In Houskeeper, the defendant was bound over by the juvenile court, filed a timely notice of appeal, voluntarily withdrew that appeal, and was ultimately convicted and sentenced by the district court. See id. at ¶¶ 3-9. He sought to directly challenge the bindover order, but the supreme court determined that it was a final, appealable order that must be immediately appealed, and since he voluntarily withdrew his appeal the supreme court did not have jurisdiction to consider the challenge. See id. at ¶¶ 23.

113 However, the case at bar presents a threshold issue not present in Houskeeper.

[WJhile defendant timely filed a notice of appeal of the bind-over order with the court of appeals, he voluntarily withdrew the appeal, which was ordered dismissed by the court of appeals. Consequently, defendant waived his right to appeal the bind-over order, and we have no jurisdiction to consider his contentions.

Id. (emphasis added). Voluntariness of the withdrawal was not an issue in Houskeeper. Voluntariness was taken for granted in that case, and it was precisely because of that voluntariness that Houskeeper's right to appeal was considered waived. See id.

114 In the present case, however, Lara contends that the withdrawal of his appeal was not knowing and voluntary. The voluntariness of the withdrawal is a threshold issue that must be addressed before we can determine that Houskeeper controls the present case. If the withdrawal was knowing and voluntary, then Houskeeper controls and we must refuse jurisdiction.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2003 UT App 318, 79 P.3d 951, 483 Utah Adv. Rep. 5, 2003 Utah App. LEXIS 94, 2003 WL 22208354, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-lara-utahctapp-2003.