People v. Bowman
People v. Bowman
Opinion of the Court
The Court of Appeals reversed the defendant’s convictions on the ground that this case should have been dismissed because of a violation of the Interstate Agreement on Detainers. We conclude that the Court of Appeals erred, and we therefore reverse the judgment of the Court of Appeals and reinstate the judgment of the circuit court.
i
In November 1977, the Oakland County prosecuting attorney authorized a complaint that charged the defendant with armed robbery,
In early 1980, the Pontiac Police Department learned that the defendant was incarcerated in Ohio. A Pontiac officer then lodged a detainer, pursuant to the Interstate Agreement on Detainers.
The iad provides that a prisoner against whom a detainer is lodged may request final disposition of the charge that underlies the detainer. Iad, article 111(a). Twelve days after the prison record clerk
The iad further provides that a prisoner’s request must be forwarded to the prosecuting authorities. Iad, article 111(b). However, the defendant’s request for final disposition was never sent to the Oakland County prosecuting attorney or to the district court in Michigan.
Approximately fifteen months after requesting final disposition of the Michigan charges, the defendant was paroled in Ohio. He waived extradition, and returned to Michigan to face the charges that were pending against him.
Before and after trial, the defendant repeatedly protested that the iad had been violated and, therefore, that this case should be dismissed. In particular, the defendant relied upon article 111(a) of the iad, which provides:
Whenever a person has entered upon a term of imprisonment in a penal or correctional institution of a party state, and whenever during the continuance of the term of imprisonment there is pending in any other party state any untried indictment, information or complaint on the basis of which a detainer has been lodged against the prisoner, he shall be brought to trial within one hundred eighty days after he shall have caused to be delivered to the prosecuting officer and the appropriate court of the prosecuting officers’ jurisdiction written notice of the place of his imprisonment and his request for a final disposition to be made of the indictment, information or complaint .... [Emphasis added.]_
If ... an action on the indictment, information or complaint on the basis of which the detainer has been lodged is not brought to trial within the period provided in Article III or Article IV hereof, the appropriate court of the jurisdiction where the indictment, information or complaint has been pending shall enter an order dismissing the same with prejudice, and any detainer based thereon shall cease to be of any force or effect.
The district court and the circuit court denied the defendant’s motions for relief under the iad. Following a jury trial, he was convicted of armed robbery, first-degree esc, and felony-firearm.
The Court of Appeals reversed the defendant’s conviction. 189 Mich App 215; 471 NW2d 645 (1991). We then granted the prosecutor’s application for leave to appeal. 439 Mich 1002 (1992).
ii
As indicated, the iad requires that trial begin within 180 days after a prisoner "shall have caused [the request for final disposition] to be delivered.” In People v Fex, 439 Mich 117; 479 NW2d 625 (1992), we were asked to determine the starting point for the 180-day period. Specifically, the issue was whether the 180-day period begins to run on the date the prisoner’s request is given to prison authorities, or on the date the request is received by officials of the state where the prosecution is pending.
We held in Fex that "the period runs from the
Following submission of the present case, the United States Supreme Court affirmed our decision in Fex. Fex v Michigan, 507 US —; 113 S Ct 1085; 122 L Ed 2d 406 (1993).
In considering the effect of the United States Supreme Court’s Fex opinion, we are mindful that the iad is a congressionally sanctioned interstate compact,
In its Fex opinion, the United States Supreme Court affirmed our determination that a prisoner has "caused to be delivered” a request for final disposition only when the request is received by the officials in the prosecuting state. The Court rejected the contention that "a prisoner’s transmittal of an iad request to the prison authorities commences the 180-day period even if the request gets lost in the mail and is never delivered to the 'receiving’ State . . . .” 122 L Ed 2d 413.
The United States Supreme Court also said in Fex that "the iad unquestionably requires delivery, and only after that has occurred can one entertain the possibility of counting the 180 days from the transmittal to the warden.” 122 L Ed 2d 414. Believing that "[cjausation of delivery is the
hi
We reaffirm our holding in Fex that the 180-day period of article 111(a) "runs from the time when the prisoner has caused delivery, which is actual receipt.” In the present case, the prisoner’s request for final disposition was never received by the appropriate authorities in Michigan, and thus the 180-day period did not begin to run. Accordingly, the lad does not require dismissal.
We thus agree with the United States Supreme Court that, until notified of a request for final disposition, the prosecutor should not be at risk of having the case dismissed. In this case, the Oakland County prosecuting attorney was not the party responsible for the failure to bring this defendant to trial within 180 days of his request for final disposition, and we see no ground upon which to require dismissal of this prosecution.
For these reasons, we reverse the judgment of the Court of Appeals and reinstate the judgment of the circuit court.
MCL 750.529; MSA 28.797.
MCL 750.520b(l)(e); MSA 28.788(2)(l)(e).
MCL 750.227b; MSA 28.424(2).
MCL 780.601 et seq.; MSA 4.147(1) et seq. The iad has also been adopted by nearly every state, the District of Columbia, and the federal government. In Ohio, it appears as Ohio Rev Code 2963.30 to 2963.35. Enacted by Congress, the iad appears as an appendix to title 18 of the United States Code.
At an evidentiary hearing concerning these events, the Ohio record clerk testified that the Ohio file does not contain the cover letter or the return receipt that would be present if the defendant’s request had been properly transmitted to Michigan.
The defendant was sentenced to concurrent life terms of imprisonment, to be preceded by a two-year consecutive term of imprisonment for felony-firearm.
US Const, art I, § 10, cl 3.
See also People v Smith, 438 Mich 715, 728, n 6; 475 NW2d 333 (1991) (opinion of Boyle, J.).
It has been suggested that an alternative remedy would be to grant sentence credit in Michigan for the time added to the defendant’s total incarceration as the result of the inaction of Ohio officials. We decline to adopt that remedy, seeing no statutory basis for it. We observe, however, that the failure of another state’s authorities to process promptly an iad request could be an appropriate consideration as a Michigan judge exercises sentencing discretion.
Concurring Opinion
(concurring). Although I agree with this Court’s decision, I would award defendant. sentence credit for the period of delay the Ohio correctional facility caused by failing to deliver the appropriate documents to the Michigan prosecutor.
MCL 780.131; MSA 28.969(1)
In People v Hill, 402 Mich 272, 280-281; 262 NW2d 641 (1978), this Court stated that the 180-day period for Michigan prisoners begins to run either when the prosecutor knows or should know
MCL 780.133; MSA 28.969(3)
This Court promulgated MCR 6.004(D),
The iad, article 111(b), requires the sending state to promptly forward defendant’s request for disposition of charges to the appropriate Michigan prosecutor, but the iad does not provide a remedy when the sending state fails to comply. The iad remedy of dismissal is not available because the 180-day deadline does not commence until the Michigan prosecutor receives defendant’s request.
Accordingly, I would remand for the computation and award of appropriate sentence credit.
Whenever the department of corrections receives notice that there is pending in this state any untried warrant, indictment, information, or complaint setting forth against any inmate of a correctional facility of this state a criminal offense for which a prison sentence might be imposed'upon conviction, the inmate shall be brought to trial within 180 days after the department of corrections causes to be delivered to the prosecuting attorney of the county in which the warrant, indictment, information, or complaint is pending written notice of the place of imprisonment of the inmate and a request for final disposition of the warrant, indictment, information, or complaint. The request shall be accompanied by a statement setting forth the term of commitment under which the prisoner is being held, the time already served, the time remaining to be served on the sentence, the amount of good time or disciplinary credits earned, the time of parole eligibility of the prisoner, and any decisions of the parole board relating to the prisoner. The written notice and statement shall be delivered by certified mail.
In the event that, within the time limitation set forth in section 1 of this act, action is not commenced on the matter for which request for disposition was made, no court of this state shall any longer have jurisdiction thereof, nor shall the untried warrant, indictment, information or complaint be of any further force or effect, and the court shall enter an order dismissing the same with prejudice.
Article V(c) states:
If the appropriate authority shall refuse or fail to accept temporary custody of said person, or in the event that an action on the indictment, information or complaint on the basis of which the detainer has been lodged is not brought to trial within the period provided in Article III or Article IV hereof, the appropriate court of the jurisdiction . . . shall enter an order dismissing the charges with prejudice .... [MCL 780.601; MSA 4.147(1).]
MCR 6.004(D) states:
(D) Untried Charges Against State Prisoner.
(1) The 180-Day Rule. Except for crimes exempted by MCL 780.131(2); MSA 28.969(1)(2), the prosecutor must make a good-faith effort to bring a criminal charge to trial within 180 days of either of the following:
(a) the time from which the prosecutor knows that the person charged with the offense is incarcerated in a state prison or is detained in a local facility awaiting incarceration in a state prison, or
(b) the time from which the Department of Corrections*432 knows or has reason to know that a criminal charge is pending against a defendant incarcerated in a state prison or detained in a local facility awaiting incarceration in a state prison.
For purposes of this subrule, a person is charged with a criminal offense if a warrant, complaint, or indictment has been issued against the person.
(2) Remedy. In cases covered by subrule (l)(a), the defendant is entitled to have the charge dismissed with prejudice if the prosecutor fails to make a good-faith effort to bring the charge to trial within the 180-day period. When, in cases covered by subrule (l)(b), the prosecutor’s failure to bring the charge to trial is attributable to lack of notice from the Department of Corrections, the defendant is entitled to sentence credit for the period of delay. Whenever the defendant’s constitutional right to a speedy trial is violated, the defendant is entitled to dismissal of the charge with prejudice.
MCR 6.004(D) was adopted October 1, 1989, to modify People v Hill, supra, which addressed cases involving Michigan prisoners. See People v Taylor, 199 Mich App 549; 502 NW2d 348 (1993); People v Metzler, 193 Mich App 541, 549; 484 NW2d 695 (1992) (Connor, J., concurring in part and dissenting in part). In Taylor, the Court of Appeals correctly recognized that MCR 6.004(D) was adopted by this Court and is not in conflict with the statutory provision regarding the 180-day rule. The court rule merely is a modification of our earlier interpretation of the statute addressed in Hill.
Without sentence credit, article 111(b) of the iad would be meaningless. Providing sentence credit here is consistent with how this Court treats Michigan prisoners.
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