PEOPLE OF MI V DAVID JAMES MONTAGUE
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STATE OF MICHIGAN
COURT OF APPEALS
PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN,
UNPUBLISHED
November 17, 2005
Plaintiff-Appellee,
v
No. 255429
Oakland Circuit Court
LC No. 2003-188605-FH
DAVID JAMES MONTAGUE,
Defendant-Appellant.
Before: Murphy, P.J., and Sawyer and Meter, JJ.
PER CURIAM.
Defendant appeals as of right his jury trial convictions of possession of a controlled
substance, MCL 333.7403(2)(b), indecent exposure, MCL 750.335a, and operating a motor
vehicle while impaired, MCL 257.625. He was sentenced as a second habitual offender, MCL
769.10, to concurrent terms of one year in jail for the possession and operating while impaired
convictions, and to ninety-three days in jail for the indecent exposure conviction. He received
448 days of sentencing credit. We affirm defendant’s convictions but remand for correction of
the judgment of sentence.1 This appeal is being decided without oral argument pursuant to MCR
7.214(A) and (E).
On appeal, defendant argues that the trial court was required to dismiss the charges
against him because he was not brought to trial within 180 days. MCL 780.131; MCR 6.004(D).
Defendant’s trial began on April 1, 2004, but the events leading to his convictions occurred on
March 11, 2002. Defendant maintains that, before the warrant was issued in this case on June
17, 2002, he was arrested on unrelated charges on May 15, 2002, and was sentenced on those
charges pursuant to a plea on August 26, 2002. Defendant presents evidence that the Department
of Corrections notified the court of his incarceration on October 14, 2002; however, the
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During sentencing, the trial court indicated that it intended to sentence defendant to ninetythree days in jail for the operating while impaired conviction, and to one year in jail for the other
convictions. This discrepancy does not impact the issue raised in this appeal, nor does it have
practical meaning considering the time imposed, the sentencing credit, and defendant’s current
status. However, the judgment of sentence indicates that defendant was found guilty of OUIL,
not operating while impaired. Because defendant was acquitted of this greater charge, we
remand the case for correction of the judgment of sentence.
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prosecutor maintains that it did not receive actual notice of defendant’s incarceration until
November 14, 2002, when the trial court prepared a writ for him. Therefore, the 180-day period
ended on May 13, 2003.
MCL 780.131(1) provides in part:
Whenever the department of corrections receives notice that there is
pending in this state any untried warrant, indictment, information, or complaint
setting forth against any inmate of a correctional facility of this state a criminal
offense for which a prison sentence might be imposed upon conviction, the inmate
shall be brought to trial within 180 days after the department of corrections causes
to be delivered to the prosecuting attorney of the county in which the warrant,
indictment, information, or complaint is pending written notice of the place of
imprisonment of the inmate and a request for final disposition of the warrant,
indictment, information, or complaint.
The purpose of the statute is to dispose of untried charges against prison inmates so that
sentences can run concurrently. People v Woodruff, 414 Mich 130, 136-137; 323 NW2d 923
(1982), overruled on other grds People v Smith, 438 Mich 715; 475 NW2d 333 (1991); People v
Chavies, 234 Mich App 274, 280; 593 NW2d 655 (1999). MCL 780.133 requires dismissal of a
prosecution with prejudice where an action is not commenced within the 180-day time limit set
forth in MCL 780.131; the court no longer has jurisdiction. The 180-day rule does not, however,
require that trial actually commence within 180 days. Rather, if apparent good-faith action is
taken well within that period, and the prosecutor proceeds promptly toward readying the case for
trial, the rule is satisfied. MCR 6.004(D); People v Hendershot, 357 Mich 300, 303-304; 98
NW2d 568 (1959); People v Bell, 209 Mich App 273, 278; 530 NW2d 167 (1995). If the
prosecutor takes good-faith action, jurisdiction over the case will not be lost unless the initial
action is followed by an inexcusable delay that evidences an intent not to bring the case to trial
promptly. People v Bradshaw, 163 Mich App 500, 505; 415 NW2d 259 (1987).
Legal issues presented under the 180-day rule are subject to de novo review. People v
McLaughlin, 258 Mich App 635, 643; 672 NW2d 860 (2003). A trial court’s attribution of delay
is reviewed for clear error. People v Crawford, 232 Mich App 608, 612; 591 NW2d 669 (1998).
Defendant maintains that the trial court failed to properly examine each delay in the
instant case and to determine which party was responsible for each delay. However, both parties
acknowledged on the first day of trial that the trial court had previously considered and rejected
defendant’s 180-day rule arguments, and it again rejected the arguments in cursory fashion on
day one of the trial. The transcripts provided to this Court do not include any pretrial
proceedings regarding the previous motion to dismiss under the 180-day rule, nor are there any
transcripts, if indeed hearings were held, concerning adjournments, despite the fact that the lower
court docket entries reference four adjournments for “investigation” spanning 2003 and early
2004. Because defendant has failed to provide transcripts of all pretrial proceedings, we lack a
portion of the record necessary to thoroughly review this claimed error. Therefore, we deem the
issue waived. People v Anderson, 209 Mich App 527, 535; 531 NW2d 780 (1995); People v
Thompson, 193 Mich App 58, 61; 483 NW2d 428 (1992); People v Coons, 158 Mich App 735,
740; 405 NW2d 153 (1987). In addition, our review of the portion of the record that has been
furnished suggests that any delay in early 2003 was due to scheduling difficulties precipitated by
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defendant’s additional pending felony charges in Macomb County, and this delay is not charged
to the prosecution. People v Jones (On Rehearing After Remand), 228 Mich App 191, 196; 579
NW2d 82 (1998), mod and remanded on other grounds 458 Mich 862 (1998) (time consumed in
trying a defendant’s other charge not counted against the 180-day period); see also Hendershot,
supra at 304; People v Freeman, 122 Mich App 260, 265; 332 NW2d 460 (1982) (delay
reasonably necessary to try an intervening case against a defendant does not necessarily militate
against a finding of good-faith prosecutorial action). Moreover, as mentioned above, the lower
court docket entries indicate that there were four adjournments for investigation covering 2003
and early 2004. At trial, as well as on appeal, the prosecutor argued that the adjournments were
attributable to defendant as he made the requests for more time, and defendant did not and does
not argue to the contrary. Adjournments granted to a defendant are not charged against the
prosecutor for purposes of the 180-day rule. Jones, supra at 196, citing Hendershot, supra at
304. On the record before us, and confined to the arguments presented on appeal by defendant,
we find no violation of the 180-day rule.
Defendant’s convictions are affirmed; however we remand this case to the trial court for
correction of the judgment of sentence. We do not retain jurisdiction.
/s/ William B. Murphy
/s/ David H. Sawyer
/s/ Patrick M. Meter
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