United States v. Jesse Arzate

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
United States v. Jesse Arzate, 545 F.2d 481 (5th Cir. 1977)

United States v. Jesse Arzate

Opinion

PER CURIAM:

Jesse Arzate was convicted of conspiracy to distribute heroin. We affirmed his conviction and sentence without opinion. U. S. v. Arzate, 5 Cir. 1974, 505 F.2d 733. Thereafter, Arzate filed a motion for new trial in the district court alleging perjured testimony by a government witness at his trial. After a hearing, the district court granted the motion for a new trial. On February 9, 1976, the scheduled date of the new trial, the government moved to dismiss the indictment. Arzate opposed the motion, contending he should be granted a judgment of acquittal. The district court permitted the dismissal, and Arzate now attempts to appeal.

Rule 48(a), Fed.R.Crim.P., allows the government to dismiss an indictment, with leave of court, at any time prior to trial. After trial begins, the government’s dismissal motion can be granted only with the defendant’s consent. In this case trial had not begun, so the defendant’s consent was not required.

The order granting the government’s pretrial motion to dismiss the indictment is not a final order and is therefore not appealable. Parr v. U. S., 5 Cir. 1955, 225 F.2d 329, affirmed, 351 U.S. 513, 76 S.Ct. 912, 100 L.Ed. 1377 (1956); 28 U.S.C. § 1291. Without a final order or an otherwise appealable decision, we do not have jurisdiction to hear this appeal. It is DISMISSED.

Reference

Full Case Name
UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Jesse ARZATE, Defendant-Appellant
Cited By
9 cases
Status
Published