State v. Miller

The trial court abused its discretion and interfered with the State's right to prosecute criminal cases when it dismissed three criminal indictments at a probation revocation hearing without a legal basis for doing so.

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On March 13, 2015, Michael Miller, Eric Evans and Nathaniel Broughton appeared for hearings as to whether their probations should be revoked in light of their involvement in new crimes. When the State failed to produce victims or witnesses of each of the new crimes, the trial court dismissed all three of the new indictments for want of prosecution. The State has appealed all three dismissals on the ground that the trial court interfered with the State’s right to prosecute when it dismissed the new indictments during the probation revocation hearings. We agree and reverse.

The records show that Miller was indicted for burglary and tools possession on September 12, 2014; that Evans was indicted for aggravated assault, robbery, battery and child cruelty on October 21, 2014; and that Broughton was indicted for aggravated assault and firearms charges on December 5, 2014. On February 24, 2015, all three of these criminal matters were called as part of a probation revocation calendar set and noticed for that day. When each probation revocation matter was called, the trial court dismissed each of the new indictments for want of prosecution, noting that the State could not get the witnesses to court in Miller’s case and the victims to court in Evans’s and Broughton’s cases. None of the trial court’s three orders dismissing the indictments noted whether the dismissals were with or without prejudice, and no transcript of proceedings was taken. These appeals followed.

State v. Miller

The trial court abused its discretion and interfered with the State's right to prosecute criminal cases when it dismissed three criminal indictments at a probation revocation hearing without a legal basis for doing so.

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