State v. R.C. (In re R.C.)

State v. R.C. (In re R.C.)

IN THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS
 

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State of Utah, in the interest of R.C.,
a person under eighteen years of age.

______________________________

State of Utah,

Plaintiff and Appellee,

v.

R.C.,

Defendant and Appellant.

 MEMORANDUM DECISION
(Not For Official Publication)

 Case No. 20040889-CA

 F I L E D
(March 3, 2005)
  2005 UT App 105

 

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Eighth District Juvenile, Duchesne Department

The Honorable Larry A. Steele

Attorneys: R.C., Whiterocks, Appellant Pro Se

Mark L. Shurtleff and Jeanne B. Inouye, Salt Lake City, for Appellee

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Before Judges Billings, Greenwood, and Thorne.

PER CURIAM:

    This case is before the court on a sua sponte motion for summary disposition.

    The juvenile court held a pretrial hearing in this case on October 6, 2004. The juvenile court signed a document entitled "minutes/order," setting forth the charges against R.C. and continuing the hearing for one week. On October 12, R.C. filed a notice of appeal, indicating that R.C. was appealing the decision "dated October 5th, 2004."(1) On October 13, R.C. entered a no-contest plea to two offenses. The remainder of the offenses were dismissed. The juvenile court entered its "Minutes, Findings, and Order" on October 13, including R.C.'s plea and his sentence.

    This court does not have jurisdiction to consider an appeal unless the appeal is taken from a final judgment or order, see Utah R. App. P. 3(a), or qualifies for an exception to the final judgment rule. See Loffredo v. Holt, 2001 UT 97,¶¶10,15, 37 P.3d 1070. "The finality of an order in juvenile proceedings is determined in a manner similar to judgments and orders in other matters. A final, appealable order is one that ends the current juvenile proceedings, leaving no question open for further judicial action." In re T.D.C., 748 P.2d 201, 202 (Utah Ct. App. 1988).

    Here, the order appealed from merely set forth the minutes from a pretrial hearing and continued that hearing for one week. The juvenile court did not enter an order that resolved any outstanding motion or issue, let alone a final judgment. Accordingly, the order entered on October 6 was not a final order or judgment. See id. ("An order which does not completely determine the rights of the parties, including those of the juvenile child, is merely interlocutory in nature.").

    Instead, the final order in this case was entered on October 13, when the juvenile court entered R.C.'s plea and sentence. See In re J.W., 2004 UT App 482,¶5 (per curiam). Rule 4 of the Utah Rules of Appellate Procedure requires that a notice of appeal be filed "within 30 days after the date of entry of the judgment or order appealed from." Utah R. App. P. 4(a). R.C. did not file a notice of appeal from the judgment and sentence.(2)

    Therefore, this court is without jurisdiction to consider this appeal.(3) When this court lacks jurisdiction it must dismiss the appeal. See Loffredo, 2001 UT 97 at ¶11.

    Accordingly, we dismiss the appeal.

______________________________

Judith M. Billings,

Presiding Judge

______________________________

Pamela T. Greenwood, Judge

I CONCUR IN THE RESULT:

______________________________

William A. Thorne Jr., Judge

1. The court assumes that this was a typographical error, and that the notice of appeal refers to the October 6, 2004 "minutes/order."

2. On November 4, 2004, R.C. filed a document with this court entitled "Petition for Interlocutory Appeal and Extraordinary Writ" (Petition). This document was insufficient to save this appeal for numerous reasons. First, the Petition concerned a final order and was untimely filed. Therefore, the Petition failed to invoke the jurisdiction of this court under rule 5, Utah Rules of Appellate Procedure. See Utah R. App. P. 5(a) (providing that appeal from interlocutory order must be filed "within 20 days after the entry of the order of the trial court"). Second, even if this court were to apply great leniency to the Petition, it cannot consider the Petition as a direct appeal of the final order, because the Petition was filed with this court rather than the district court. See Utah R. App. P. 4(a) ("[T]he notice of appeal required by Rule 3 shall be filed with the clerk of the trial court within 30 days after the date of entry of the judgment or order appealed from.").

3. There is no indication in the record that this appeal may be saved by the provisions of rule 4(c), Utah Rules of Appellate Procedure, which states, in relevant part: "[A] notice of appeal filed after the announcement of a decision, judgment, or order but before the entry of the judgment or order of the trial court shall be treated as filed after such entry and on the day thereof." Utah R. App. P. 4(c). The record does not reflect that the juvenile court announced a "decision, judgment or order," id., regarding the judgment and sentence prior to entry of the same on October 13, 2003.