Allen v. Friel
| Decision Date | 19 August 2008 |
| Docket Number | No. 20070254.,20070254. |
| Citation | 2008 UT 56,194 P.3d 903 |
| Parties | Paul C. ALLEN, Petitioner and Appellant, v. Clint FRIEL, Warden, State of Utah, Respondent and Appellee. |
| Court | Utah Supreme Court |
INTRODUCTION
¶ 1 In 2000, Paul Allen was convicted of hiring an accomplice to kill his wife. Following an unsuccessful appeal, Mr. Allen petitioned for post-conviction relief. After his petition was denied by the district court, both on the merits and procedurally, Mr. Allen again appealed to this court. We affirm the ruling of the district court dismissing Mr. Allen's petition for post-conviction relief.
¶ 2 Following a trial for paying to have his wife killed, Mr. Allen was convicted of aggravated murder and was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole. Mr. Allen appealed, alleging six errors of the trial court. This court examined three of Mr. Allen's claims on the merits and affirmed Mr. Allen's conviction. State v. Allen, 2005 UT 11, ¶¶ 55-57, 108 P.3d 730. We refused to consider, due to inadequate briefing, his three other claims. Id. ¶ 11 n. 2. Mr. Allen, pro se, filed a petition for post-conviction relief under the Post-Conviction Relief Act. Utah Code Ann. § 78-35a-101 to -304 (2002). Mr. Allen's petition alleged five broad claims for relief; the district court, however, discovered eleven separate claims in the petition. The claims the district court found were (1) that there was judicial bias; (2) that the prosecution used false testimony during trial; (3) that the jurors were not fair and impartial; (4) that the trial court erred in refusing to give his proffered jury instructions; (5) that the jury instructions and special verdict form were erroneous; (6) that the trial court erred by trying him for multiple offenses; (7) that the Utah Supreme Court's decision on his direct appeal was result-driven and erroneous; (8) that the trial court's errors resulted in a trial that was fundamentally unfair; (9) that the trial court erred in denying his motion for a new trial; (10) that there was ineffective assistance of trial counsel; and (11) that there was ineffective assistance of appellate counsel. Mr. Allen's petition also challenged the trial court's denial of the jurors' request for transcripts of the prosecution witnesses' testimony.
¶ 3 The district court summarily dismissed claim seven as frivolous on its face. It summarily dismissed claim nine because it had previously been adjudicated. The State filed responses to the remaining claims and later moved for their summary dismissal. The district court granted the State's motion and dismissed all of Mr. Allen's remaining claims. The district court ruled that most of Mr. Allen's claims were raised or addressed at trial or on appeal, or could have been raised but were not raised at trial or appeal, and were therefore procedurally barred. Utah Code Ann. § 78B-9-106(b), (c) (2008). The district court next found that the trial court properly denied the jurors' request for transcripts of prosecution witnesses' testimony. Also, while the district court recognized that the claim of ineffective assistance of appellate counsel could not have been raised before, it found this claim "too vague and speculative" to merit consideration. Last, the district court struck from the record an affidavit by a juror regarding the jury deliberations during Mr. Allen's criminal trial.
¶ 4 Mr. Allen now appeals the district court's dismissal of his claims. We affirm the district court's decision for several reasons, prominent among them being Mr. Allen's failure to follow appellate rules. Mr. Allen ignored one of the most fundamental principles of the appellate process when he did not identify any flaws in the district court's order that required reversal. Mr. Allen's filings with this court suggest that he would have us take on the responsibility of applying an independent, critical eye to all of the activities that comprised the proceedings that led to his conviction and imprisonment as though we had not already reviewed his conviction on appeal. Additionally, Mr. Allen chose not to cogently or coherently present arguments in support of his claims, nor did he provide the portions of the record that were central to his appeal. Further, even if we did not affirm the district court's ruling on the grounds that Mr. Allen failed to follow appellate rules, under the Post-Conviction Relief Act, Mr. Allen failed to meet his burden of showing that there was not a reasonable basis in the record to support the district court's holdings.
¶ 5 We review the district court's legal conclusions for correctness without deference to the lower court. Myers v. State, 2004 UT 31, ¶ 9, 94 P.3d 211. We will disturb the district court's factual findings only if they lack a rational basis. Id.; see also Rudolph v. Galetka, 2002 UT 7, ¶ 4, 43 P.3d 467; Medina v. Cook, 779 P.2d 658, 658 (Utah 1989).
¶ 6 The jurisdiction of this court is not unbounded. Its scope is circumscribed by our constitution and by statute. Article VIII, section 3 of the Utah Constitution limits this court's original jurisdiction to issuing extraordinary writs and answering questions of state law certified by a federal court. Utah Const. art. VIII, § 3. Our jurisdiction over all other matters is appellate and must be "exercised as provided by statute." Id. Specifically, the Utah Code provides that we have appellate jurisdiction over "appeals from the district court involving a conviction or charge of a first degree felony." Utah Code Ann. § 78A-3-102(3)(i) (2008). Mr. Allen's case involves a first degree felony, and he is appealing from the district court; therefore, our jurisdiction over his case is limited to appellate jurisdiction and is governed by the Utah Rules of Appellate Procedure.
A. Mr. Allen Has Come to This Court in Virtually Total Disregard of Our Appellate Rules
¶ 7 Mr. Allen's disregard for our appellate rules is comprehensive in its scope. Our appellate rules require that an appellant provide an appellate court a brief containing "[a] statement of the issues presented for review" and an argument containing "the contentions and reasons ... with respect to the issues presented, including the grounds for reviewing any issue not preserved in the trial court, with citations to the authorities, statutes, and parts of the record relied on." Utah R.App. P. 24. This organizational framework derives from the fundamental distinction between the role of appellate courts and the role of courts of original jurisdiction. In an instance where the court has appellate jurisdiction, an appellant must allege the lower court committed an error that the appellate court should correct. If an appellant does not challenge a final order of the lower court on appeal, that decision will be placed beyond the reach of further review. Tracy v. Univ. of Utah Hosp., 619 P.2d 340, 341 (Utah 1980). If an appellant fails to allege specific errors of the lower court, the appellate court will not seek out errors in the lower court's decision. "In general, if a defendant has not raised an issue on appeal, [an appellate court] may not consider the issue sua sponte." State v. Rodriguez, 841 P.2d 1228, 1229 (Utah Ct.App.1992).
¶ 8 Further, an appellant's reply brief "shall be limited to answering any new matter set forth in the opposing brief." Utah R.App. P. 24(c). This requirement is rooted in considerations of fairness. If new issues could be raised in a reply brief, the appellee would have no opportunity to respond to those arguments. It is well settled that "issues raised by an appellant in the reply brief that were not presented in the opening brief are considered waived and will not be considered by the appellate court." Brown v. Glover, 2000 UT 89, ¶ 23, 16 P.3d 540; see, e.g., State v. Phathammavong, 860 P.2d 1001, 1003-04 (Utah Ct.App.1993); see also 5 Am. Jur.2d Appellate Review § 560 (1995); 4 C.J.S. Appeal and Error § 619 (1993).
¶ 9 In addition to requiring issues to be raised in the opening brief, this court has repeatedly noted that a brief is inadequate if "it merely contains bald citations to authority [without] development of that authority and reasoned analysis based on that authority." Smith v. Four Corners Mental Health Ctr., Inc., 2003 UT 23, ¶ 46, 70 P.3d 904 (alteration in original) (internal quotation marks omitted). An appellate court is not "a depository in which [a party] may dump the burden of argument and research." Id. (alteration in original) (internal quotation marks omitted). A petitioner must plead his claims with sufficient specificity for this court to make a ruling on the merits. Further, although we are reluctant to penalize self-represented litigants for technical rule violations, we will not assume an appellant's "burden of argument and research." Treff v. Hinckley, 2001 UT 50, ¶ 11, 26 P.3d 212 (internal quotation marks omitted).
¶ 10 Finally, not only must a petitioner point out the perceived errors of the lower court, he must also provide the appellate court with the parts of the record that are central to the determination of his appeal. The Utah Rules of Appellate Procedure require that a brief shall contain "those parts of the record on appeal that are of central importance to the determination of the appeal, such as the challenged instructions, findings of fact and conclusions of law, memorandum decision, the transcript of the court's oral decision, or the contract or document subject to construction." Utah...
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