Idaho Court of Appeals, 2023

STATE OF IDAHO, Filed: December 18, 2023, Melanie Gagnepain, Clerk v. THIS IS AN UNPUBLISHED MICHELLE BRANDY RICHARDSON, OPINION AND SHALL NOT BE CITED AS AUTHORITY

STATE OF IDAHO, Filed: December 18, 2023, Melanie Gagnepain, Clerk v. THIS IS AN UNPUBLISHED MICHELLE BRANDY RICHARDSON, OPINION AND SHALL NOT BE CITED AS AUTHORITY
Idaho Court of Appeals · Decided December 18, 2023
STATE OF IDAHO, Filed: December 18, 2023, Melanie Gagnepain, Clerk v. THIS IS AN UNPUBLISHED MICHELLE BRANDY RICHARDSON, OPINION AND SHALL NOT BE CITED AS AUTHORITY

Opinion

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Docket No. 50434 STATE OF IDAHO, ) ) Filed: December 18, 2023 Plaintiff-Respondent, ) ) Melanie Gagnepain, Clerk v. ) ) THIS IS AN UNPUBLISHED MICHELLE BRANDY RICHARDSON, ) OPINION AND SHALL NOT ) BE CITED AS AUTHORITY Defendant-Appellant. ) ) Appeal from the District Court of the Fifth Judicial District, State of Idaho, Minidoka County. Hon. Eric J. Wildman, District Judge.

Order revoking probation and executing previously suspended sentence, affirmed.

Erik R. Lehtinen, Interim State Appellate Public Defender; Kimberly A. Coster, Deputy Appellate Public Defender, Boise, for appellant.

Hon. Raúl R. Labrador, Attorney General; Kenneth K. Jorgensen, Deputy Attorney General, Boise, for respondent. ________________________________________________ Before LORELLO, Chief Judge; GRATTON, Judge; and HUSKEY, Judge ________________________________________________ PER CURIAM Michelle Brandy Richardson pled guilty to possession of a controlled substance, Idaho Code § 37-2732(c)(1), and the district court imposed a unified sentence of seven years, with four years determinate, suspended the sentence and placed Richardson on probation. Subsequently, Richardson admitted to violating the terms of the probation, and the district court consequently revoked probation and ordered execution of a reduced unified sentence of seven years, with two years determinate. Richardson appeals, contending that the district court abused its discretion in revoking probation.

It is within the trial court’s discretion to revoke probation if any of the terms and conditions of the probation has been violated. I.C. §§ 19-2603, 20-222; State v. Beckett, 122 Idaho 324, 325, 834 P.2d 326, 327 (Ct. App. 1992); State v. Adams, 115 Idaho 1053, 1054, 772 P.2d 260, 261 (Ct. App. 1989); State v. Hass, 114 Idaho 554, 558, 758 P.2d 713, 717 (Ct. App. 1988). In determining whether to revoke probation a court must examine whether the probation is achieving the goal of rehabilitation and consistent with the protection of society. State v. Upton, 127 Idaho 274, 275, 899 P.2d 984, 985 (Ct. App. 1995); Beckett, 122 Idaho at 325, 834 P.2d at 327; Hass, 114 Idaho at 558, 758 P.2d at 717. The court may, after a probation violation has been established, order that the suspended sentence be executed or, in the alternative, the court is authorized under I.C.R. 35 to reduce the sentence. Beckett, 122 Idaho at 325, 834 P.2d at 327; State v. Marks, 116 Idaho 976, 977, 783 P.2d 315, 316 (Ct. App. 1989). The court may also order a period of retained jurisdiction.

I.C. § 19-2601(4). A decision to revoke probation will be disturbed on appeal only upon a showing that the trial court abused its discretion. Beckett, 122 Idaho at 325, 834 P.2d at 327. In reviewing the propriety of a probation revocation, the focus of the inquiry is the conduct underlying the trial court’s decision to revoke probation. State v. Morgan, 153 Idaho 618, 621, 288 P.3d 835, 838 (Ct. App. 2012). Thus, this Court will consider the elements of the record before the trial court relevant to the revocation of probation issues which are properly made part of the record on appeal. Id. Applying the foregoing standards, and having reviewed the record in this case, we cannot say that the district court abused its discretion in revoking probation and ordering execution of a reduced sentence of seven years, with two years determinate. Therefore, the order revoking probation and directing execution of a reduced sentence is affirmed.

Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.