McCree v. State

Stephanie McCree appeals from the trial court’s order denying her plea in bar based upon a violation of her right to a speedy trial. For the reasons set forth below, we affirm. The record shows that McCree and her co-defendant, Somora Wilson, were arrested on November 18, 2005, and subsequently indicted on May 1, 2008, for three counts of cruelty to children and five counts of aggravated battery. The case was tried before a jury beginning on August 24, 2009, but the case ended in a mistrial when a previously admitted audiotape containing hearsay was played during the jury’s deliberations at the jury’s request. The trial court entered an order granting the mistrial on August 27, 2009.

On September 28, 2009, McCree filed two plea in bar motions: one based upon prosecutorial misconduct and the other upon a violation of her right to a speedy trial. After a hearing held on July 9, 2010, the trial court denied both motions in separate written orders entered on August 5, 2010. The record shows that a new assistant district attorney assigned to the case requested the rule nisi in June 2010 to schedule the motions for a July 2010 hearing after discovering that the court computer system had mistakenly listed the case as closed since the date of the mistrial. The assistant district attorney discovered the error when she “actually pulled the physical file that she was taking over and . . . started inquiring as to the status.”