State v. Prion
Annotate this CaseLemuel Prion pled guilty and mentally ill to three felony charges pursuant to Utah Code Ann. 77-16-104(3). Under the provisions of the statute, Prion was first sentenced to three terms of varying length, all to be served concurrently. As part of his first sentence, Prion was committed to the hospital for evaluation. After his stay there, Prion was released. Based upon the recommendations of the hospital staff and administration, the district court resentenced Prion to serve his three terms consecutively, nearly doubling his prison time. Prion filed a motion to correct his sentence, claiming that his second sentence was statutorily barred and violated the Double Jeopardy Clause of the federal constitution. The district court denied the motion, and the court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court reversed and remanded, concluding that, although the sentencing statute at issue expressly allows for a recall and resentencing at any time during an eighteen-month review period, Prion's resentencing exceeded the bounds of the double jeopardy clause in light of the nature and timeframe of this proceeding.
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