Priester v. Department of Corrections
| Decision Date | 26 August 2003 |
| Docket Number | No. WD 62236.,WD 62236. |
| Parties | Robert L. PRIESTER, Jr., Appellant, v. Missouri DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS, Respondent. |
| Court | Missouri Court of Appeals |
Robert Priester, Moberly, pro se.
Jeremiah W. (Jay) Nixon, Atty Gen., Michael J. Spillane, Office of Attorney General, Jefferson City, for Respondent.
Robert L. Priester, Jr., appeals the circuit court's granting summary judgment for the Department of Corrections in a declaratory judgement action in which Priester sought jail-time credit under § 558.031, RSMo 2000. We affirm the circuit court's judgment.
On March 20, 1996, the circuit court convicted Priester of unlawful use of a weapon but suspended imposition of sentence and placed Priester on probation. On January 6, 1998, while Priester was on probation, police detained him in St. Louis County to investigate a murder.
While police detained Priester, the circuit court issued a probation violation warrant, and police served it to him. The probation violation report listed two possible grounds for the violation: violating his probation by committing the murder and by having a handgun in his possession. The report recommended to the circuit court that it revoke Priester's probation for possessing a handgun and noted that a "supplemental violation report [would] be submitted as soon as [the probation officer] receive[d] a copy of the police report [on the murder charge]."
The violation for possessing a handgun was based on statements by the murder victim's two children and by Priester's daughter. They had told police that they saw Priester with a silver revolver on January 2 and 4, 1998. Although this probation violation did not occur on the day of the murder, a police investigation of the murder is what led police to these witnesses. Authorities issued a separate warrant for Priester's arrest on the murder charge on January 22, 1998. On the same day, authorities asked the circuit court to suspend Priester's probation until a probation revocation hearing could be held "based on the new charges issued January 22, 1998, for murder in the second degree and armed criminal action."
Priester requested a preliminary hearing on the alleged probation violations, and a preliminary hearing officer convened a hearing on February 2, 1998. The preliminary hearing officer found that probable cause existed to find that Priester had committed the charged murder and that he had possessed a weapon. The hearing officer recommended that the circuit court revoke Priester's probation.
On April 21, 1998, the circuit court revoked Priester's probation on the ground that he had unlawfully possessed a weapon and sentenced him to five years in prison for the unlawful use of a weapon offense. The circuit court did not revoke Priester's probation based on the pending murder charge.
Priester began serving the sentence on April 23, 1998. On September 6, 1999, authorities paroled Priester to Franklin County authorities to dispose of charges pending against him. On March 7, 2000, Priester pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and armed criminal action, and the circuit court sentenced him to 15 years on each charge to be served concurrently. Priester returned to prison on March 10, 2000.
On June 25, 2002, Priester filed a declaratory judgment action with the circuit court seeking credit toward his 15-year sentences for murder and armed criminal action for the one year and 4½ months that he had served on the unlawful use of a weapon conviction after revocation of his probation.1 He claimed that the probation revocation was "related to" his conviction for murder and armed criminal action and, therefore, according to § 558.031, that entitled him to credit for that time. The circuit court disagreed and granted summary judgment for the Department of Corrections. Priester appeals.
When we review a summary judgment, we consider the evidence in the record in the light most favorable to the party against whom the circuit court ruled. We endeavor to do this by accepting only inferences in the evidence that favor the party against whom the circuit court ruled. ITT Commercial Finance Corporation v. Mid-America Marine Supply Corporation, 854 S.W.2d 371, 376 (Mo. banc 1993). Before a circuit court can enter summary judgment, it must determine that the parties are not disputing any genuine issue of material fact and that the party seeking summary judgment is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law. Id. at 377; Rule 74.04.
Priester wrongly argues that his confinement resulting from revocation of his...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Pettis v. Missouri Dept. of Corrections
...However, some causal relationship between the inmate's time in custody and the offense must be established. Priester v. Dep't of Corr., 119 S.W.3d 140, 142 (Mo.App. W.D. 2003); Belton v. Moore, 112 S.W.3d 1, 4 (Mo.App. W.D.2003). If an inmate is in custody, has no eligibility for release, a......
-
Yowell v. Mo. Dep't of Corr.
...related, and thus Mr. Yowell is not entitled to jail-time credit. The Department bases its argument3 on Priester v. Missouri Department of Corrections, 119 S.W.3d 140 (Mo.App.W.D. 2003). In Priester, the petitioner was investigated for murder while on probation. Id. The investigation led to......
-
State ex rel. Gater v. Burgess
...be entitled to jail-time credit because his time in custody would not be "related to" the current offense. Priester v. Mo. Dep't of Corr., 119 S.W.3d 140, 141-42 (Mo.App. W.D.2003) (holding that where there were two possible grounds to revoke defendant's probation and only one ground was re......