APPEAL
FROM THE WASHINGTON COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT [NO. 72CR-17-863-7]
HONORABLE JOANNA TAYLOR, JUDGE.
Leslie
Rutledge, Att'y Gen., by: Adam Jackson, Ass't
Att'y Gen., for appellant.
Hodge
Calhoun Giattina, PLLC, by: Robert E. Hodge III, for
appellee.
JOSEPHINE LINKER HART, ASSOCIATE JUSTICE.
The
State appeals the Washington County Circuit Court's
decision to dismiss criminal charges against Roger Jones for
violation of his speedy-trial rights. However, Ark. R. App.
P. -Crim. 3(d) prohibits this court from considering a State
appeal from any final order unless "the correct and
uniform administration of the criminal law requires review by
the court." Because the circuit court's decision to
dismiss the charges turned upon the specific facts of this
particular case, we cannot consider the State's appeal.
Accordingly, the present appeal is dismissed.
I.
Background
Jones
was arrested on January 29, 2017, based on allegations that
Jones had sexually assaulted his two children. As part of its
investigation, the State took a blanket containing apparent
semen stains from a room shared by the two children and
submitted it to the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory
("Crime Lab") for serology and DNA testing. The
State also obtained DNA samples from Jones and the two
children for comparison to whatever was on the blanket.
The
first trial date was set for May 30, 2017. One hundred
twenty-one (121) days would transpire between January 29,
2017 and May 30, 2017. It is undisputed that this period of
one hundred twenty-one days is appropriately included in the
speedy-trial calculation.
On May
30, 2017, the circuit court granted the State's motion
for a continuance until August 22, 2017, on the basis that
reports from the State Crime Lab had not yet been received.
Eighty-four (84) days would transpire between May 30, 2017
and August 22, 2017. In its May 31, 2017 continuance order,
the circuit court excluded this period of time for purposes
of speedy-trial calculation.
On
August 22, 2017, the circuit court granted the State's
second motion for a continuance until November 2, 2017, again
on the basis that reports from the State Crime Lab had not
yet been received. Seventy-two (72) days would transpire
between August 22, 2017 and November 2, 2017. In its August
23, 2017 continuance order, the circuit court excluded this
period of time for purposes of speedy-trial calculation.
On
November 3, 2017, the circuit court granted the State's
third motion for a continuance until January 23, 2018, again
on the basis that reports from the State Crime Lab had not
yet been received. Eighty-two (82) days would transpire
between November 2, 2017 (the date of the hearing on the
State's third continuance motion) and January 23, 2018.
In its November 3, 2017 continuance order, the circuit court
excluded this period of time for purposes of speedy-trial
calculation.
On
January 23, 2018, the circuit court granted the State's
fourth motion for a continuance until February 13, 2018,
again on the basis that reports from the State Crime Lab had
not yet been received. Twenty-one (21) days would transpire
between January 23, 2018 and February 13, 2018. In its
January 23, 2018 continuance order, the circuit court
included this period of time for purposes of speedy-trial
because of an apparent lack of due diligence on the part of
the State. No transcript of a hearing on this motion is
abstracted or otherwise contained in the record. The circuit
court also ordered that there would be a bond hearing for
January 29, 2018.
On
January 31, 2018, the circuit court entered an order
reflecting its findings and decision relating to the January
29, 2018 bond hearing. At the hearing itself, Jones had asked
the court to reconsider some of its prior orders that had
excluded periods of time for speedy-trial purposes because
the State had failed to exercise due diligence during those
periods. Based upon his understanding of the circumstances at
the time, Jones argued that the Crime Lab had completed the
serology report by March 2017, at which point the Crime Lab
transferred the file to its DNA testing department, but the
file was never assigned to an analyst and essentially sat
unprocessed since that time. The circuit court agreed,
released Jones on his own recognizances, and ruled that the
previously excluded periods from August 22, 2017 to November
2, 2017 (72 days) and from November 2, 2017 to January 23,
2018 (82 days) would instead be included for purposes of
speedy-trial calculation.
On
February 13, 2018, the circuit court granted the State's
fifth motion for a continuance until March 28, 2018, on the
basis "that additional Crime Lab testing must be
submitted and completed." Forty-three (43) days would
transpire between February 13, 2018 and March 28, 2018. In
its February 13, 2018 continuance order, the ...