Walsworth v. Super. Ct.
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The Court of Appeal of the State of California, Third Appellate District, directed the Superior Court of Sacramento County to dismiss the case of Adam Walsworth. Walsworth was previously convicted, but his conviction was reversed and the case was remanded for a new trial. The remittitur (official court document that returns a case to a lower court) was issued on October 27, 2022, and received by the court clerk on November 1, 2022. However, Walsworth was not brought to trial within 60 days of the remittitur filing, a violation of his statutory right to a speedy trial.
The Superior Court argued that the 60-day speedy trial period had not passed because the remittitur was filed when the sentencing court received it on February 1, 2023, not when it was received by the court clerk. The appellate court disagreed, holding that, under the California Rules of Court, a document is deemed filed when it is received by the court clerk. As such, the remittitur was filed on November 1, 2022, and the 60-day speedy trial period expired on December 31, 2022.
No good cause for the delay was provided, and the court noted that risks of clerical error or neglect must rest with the prosecution, not the defendant. Thus, the court concluded that Walsworth's case must be dismissed due to violation of section 1382 of the Penal Code, which mandates dismissal when a defendant is not brought to trial within 60 days after the filing of the remittitur in the trial court, unless good cause for the delay is shown.
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