Idaho Court of Appeals, 2026

State of Idaho v. Brian Carl Baca

State of Idaho v. Brian Carl Baca
Idaho Court of Appeals · Decided May 14, 2026
State of Idaho v. Brian Carl Baca

Opinion

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Docket No. 53200 STATE OF IDAHO, ) ) Filed: May 14, 2026 Plaintiff-Respondent, ) ) Melanie Gagnepain, Clerk v. ) ) THIS IS AN UNPUBLISHED BRIAN CARL BACA, ) OPINION AND SHALL NOT ) BE CITED AS AUTHORITY Defendant-Appellant. ) ) Appeal from the District Court of the First Judicial District, State of Idaho, Kootenai County. Hon. John A. Cafferty, District Judge.

Order denying Idaho Criminal Rule 35 motion for reduction of sentence, affirmed.

Erik R. Lehtinen, State Appellate Public Defender; Jenny C. Swinford, Deputy Appellate Public Defender, Boise, for appellant.

Hon. Raúl R. Labrador, Attorney General; Kacey L. Jones, Deputy Attorney General, Boise, for respondent. ________________________________________________ Before TRIBE, Chief Judge; HUSKEY, Judge; and LORELLO, Judge ________________________________________________ PER CURIAM Brian Carl Baca pled guilty to possession of a controlled substance (Idaho Code §§ 37-2732(c)(1)). Baca also admitted to being a persistent violator of the law (I.C.

§ 19-2514). The district court sentenced Baca to a unified term of twenty years with four years determinate. Baca filed an Idaho Criminal Rule 35 motion for reduction of sentence, which the district court denied. Baca appeals, asserting that the district court abused its discretion by denying his I.C.R. 35 motion.

A motion for reduction of sentence under I.C.R. 35 is essentially a plea for leniency, addressed to the sound discretion of the court. State v. Knighton, 143 Idaho 318, 319, 144 P.3d 23, 24 (2006); State v. Allbee, 115 Idaho 845, 846, 771 P.2d 66, 67 (Ct. App. 1989). In presenting an I.C.R. 35 motion, the defendant must show that the sentence is excessive in light of new or additional information subsequently provided to the district court in support of the motion. State v. Huffman, 144 Idaho 201, 203, 159 P.3d 838, 840 (2007). Upon review of the record, including any new information submitted with Baca’s I.C.R. 35 motion, we conclude no abuse of discretion has been shown. Therefore, the district court’s order denying Baca’s I.C.R. 35(b) motion is affirmed.

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