State v. Linton

93 P.3d 183
CourtCourt of Appeals of Washington
DecidedJune 28, 2004
Docket52195-1-I
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 93 P.3d 183 (State v. Linton) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Washington primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Linton, 93 P.3d 183 (Wash. Ct. App. 2004).

Opinion

93 P.3d 183 (2004)
122 Wash.App. 73

STATE of Washington, Appellant,
v.
Roy Bernard LINTON, Respondent.

No. 52195-1-I.

Court of Appeals of Washington, Division 1.

June 28, 2004.

*184 Seth Aaron Fine, Attorney at Law, Everett, WA, for Respondent.

Dana M. Nelson, Nielsen Broman & Koch PLLC, Seattle, WA, for Appellant.

APPELWICK, J.

Roy Linton was charged with first degree assault. The jury was unable to agree that he had committed first degree assault and rendered a verdict finding Linton guilty of second degree assault. The trial court denied a retrial on the first degree assault charge on the grounds that it would expose Linton to double jeopardy. We affirm.

FACTS

Linton was charged with one count of first degree assault and one count of robbery following his assault of Clancy Rueb.[1] The trial judge instructed the jury on first degree assault and on second degree assault as a lesser included offense.

On Friday, February 21, 2003, after approximately 3 hours and 40 minutes of deliberations, the jury submitted to the trial court the following query:

We have come to a vote of 11 to 1 for 1st degree assault. According to rule # 14, do we have to submit a guilty verdict to 2nd degree assault or are we a hung jury on 1st degree assault? We are unanimous that there was an assault. Some will not agree to assault # 2 v. # 1.

On Monday, February 24, the trial court instructed the jury to re-read Jury Instruction 23, which stated in relevant part:

You will next consider the crime of Assault in the First Degree as charged in Count II. If you unanimously agree on a verdict, you must fill in the blank provided in verdict form B the words "not guilty" or the word "guilty," according to the decision you reach. If you cannot agree on a verdict, do not fill in the blank provided in verdict form B.
If you find the defendant guilty on verdict form B, do not use verdict form C. If you find the defendant not guilty of the crime of Assault in the First Degree, or if after full and careful consideration of the evidence you cannot agree on that crime, you will consider the lesser crime of Assault in the Second Degree. If you unanimously agree on a verdict, you must fill in the blank provided in verdict form C the words "not guilty" or the word "guilty," according to the decision you reach....

Approximately one hour later, the jury returned a verdict finding Linton guilty of second degree assault.

The trial court dismissed the jury with Linton's consent. Linton was sentenced to an exceptional sentence on the second degree assault verdict.[2] The State filed a motion for a retrial on grounds that the jury had deadlocked on the first degree assault charge. Following a hearing on the issue of a retrial, the trial court denied the State's request for a retrial. The State appeals.

ANALYSIS

The Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution states, "nor shall any *185 person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb...." The double jeopardy clause of the Washington Constitution, article I, section 9, states that "[n]o person shall [be subject for the same offense] to be twice put in jeopardy for the same offense."

A comparison of the provisions found in the United States constitution and our state constitution with regard to double jeopardy, reveals that the two are identical in thought, substance, and purpose. In a series of cases commencing with State v. Vance, 29 Wash. 435, 70 P. 34 (1902), this court has adhered to the rule that where the language of the state constitution is similar to that of the Federal constitution, the language of the state constitutional provision should receive the same definition and interpretation as that which has been given to the like provision in the Federal constitution by the United States [S]upreme [C]ourt.

State v. Schoel, 54 Wash.2d 388, 391, 341 P.2d 481 (1959). Thus, the double jeopardy clause of the state constitution, like its counterpart in the United States Constitution, offers several, related protections:

"It protects against a second prosecution for the same offense after acquittal. It protects against a second prosecution for the same offense after conviction. And it protects against multiple punishments for the same offense." North Carolina v. Pearce, 395 U.S. 711, 717, 89 S.Ct. 2072, 23 L.Ed.2d 656 (1969), overruled on other grounds in Alabama v. Smith, 490 U.S. 794, 109 S.Ct. 2201, 104 L.Ed.2d 865 (1989). It also protects the defendant's "valued right to have his trial completed by a particular tribunal." United States v. DiFrancesco, 449 U.S. 117, 128, 101 S.Ct. 426, 66 L.Ed.2d 328 (1980) (quoting Arizona v. Washington, 434 U.S. 497, 503, 98 S.Ct. 824, 54 L.Ed.2d 717 (1978) (quoting Wade v. Hunter, 336 U.S. 684, 689, 69 S.Ct. 834, 93 L.Ed. 974 (1949))). "[T]he protection of the Double Jeopardy Clause by its terms applies only if there has been some event, such as an acquittal, which terminates the original jeopardy." Richardson v. United States, 468 U.S. 317, 325, 104 S.Ct. 3081, 82 L.Ed.2d 242 (1984). Not only is retrial precluded under the double jeopardy provision of the Fifth Amendment in an appropriate case, but the government's appeal of a judgment of acquittal is similarly barred. United States v. Martin Linen Supply Co., 430 U.S. 564, 97 S.Ct. 1349, 51 L.Ed.2d 642 (1977).

State v. Kirk, 64 Wash.App. 788, 790-91, 828 P.2d 1128 (1992).

The State maintains that because the jury deadlocked on Linton's first degree assault charge, they are entitled to retry him on that charge. We disagree.

Generally, "constitutional double jeopardy provisions do not bar retrial following a mistrial granted because a jury was unable to reach a verdict." State v. Ahluwalia, 143 Wash.2d 527, 538, 22 P.3d 1254 (2001) (citing Arizona, 434 U.S. at 505, 98 S.Ct. 824); Richardson, 468 U.S. at 324, 104 S.Ct. 3081. However, there are exceptions to this rule.

In State v. Anderson, 96 Wash.2d 739, 638 P.2d 1205, cert. denied, 459 U.S. 842, 103 S.Ct. 93, 74 L.Ed.2d 85 (1982), our Supreme Court held that where a conviction is reversed and remanded for a new trial, provided that the reversal was not based upon insufficiency of the evidence, "the defendant may be retried for the convicted offense and any lesser included offenses." Anderson, 96 Wash.2d at 742, 638 P.2d 1205. Upon retrial, however, the double jeopardy provisions bar retrial of a higher degree offense because the defendant "has implicitly been acquitted of the higher degrees of the crime." Anderson, 96 Wash.2d at 742, 638 P.2d 1205 (citing Schoel, 54 Wash.2d 388, 341 P.2d 481; State v. Murphy, 13 Wash. 229, 43 P. 44 (1895)); see also State v. Brown, 127 Wash.2d 749, 903 P.2d 459 (1995) (citing State v. Markle,

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

Related

State of West Virginia v. Robert Frazier
West Virginia Supreme Court, 2014
State v. Linton
132 P.3d 127 (Washington Supreme Court, 2006)
State v. Benn
130 Wash. App. 308 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 2005)
State v. Eggleston
118 P.3d 959 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 2005)
In Re Candelario
118 P.3d 349 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 2005)
In re the Personal Restraint of Candelario
118 P.3d 349 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 2005)
State v. Ramos
124 Wash. App. 334 (Court of Appeals of Washington, 2004)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
93 P.3d 183, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-linton-washctapp-2004.