State v. Isbell

• Decision Date: 30 November 2007
• Docket Number: 1061115.
• Citation: 985 So.2d 446
• Parties: Ex parte State of Alabama. (In re STATE of Alabama v. John Randall ISBELL).
• Court: Alabama Supreme Court

985 So.2d 446

Ex parte State of Alabama.

(In re STATE of Alabama v. John Randall ISBELL).

1061115.

Supreme Court of Alabama.

November 30, 2007.

[985 So.2d 447]

Tim Morgan, district atty., and Jay E. Town, asst. district atty., Huntsville, for petitioner.

Phillip B. Price Sr., of Price & Flowers Law Firm, P.C., Huntsville, for respondent.

Mary A. Rhodes, Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences, for amicus curiae Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences, in support of the petitioner.

On Application for Rehearing

PER CURIAM.

This Court's opinion of August 24, 2007, is withdrawn, and the following is substituted therefor.

The State of Alabama petitions this Court for a writ of mandamus directing the Madison Circuit Court to set aside its order requiring the Department of Forensic Sciences ("DFS") to "turn over to [John Randall Isbell, the defendant in a criminal proceeding before the circuit court,] the complete history of malfunctions, repairs or reports of malfunction on the Draeger Device ARMM-0423." The State contends that this order requires it to research, inspect, identify, copy, assemble, and make arrangements to deliver voluminous documents to Isbell. For the reasons discussed below, we grant the petition. In resolving the question presented by this petition, we also resolve a recurring jurisdictional question applicable to petitions for extraordinary writs in criminal proceedings.

I. Procedural History

On January 20, 2004, Isbell was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol ("DUI") and for failing to yield the right-of-way. He was administered a breath-alcohol-analysis test using a Draeger brand device. The test revealed Isbell's blood-alcohol level to be .22. Isbell pleaded guilty in the Madison District Court to DUI and to failing to yield the right-of-way. He appealed to the Madison Circuit Court for a trial de novo. Isbell then filed several discovery motions requesting information concerning the "Draeger Device [the machine used to test breath for alcohol content], its complete history of malfunctions, repairs or reports of malfunctions." After a hearing, the circuit court granted Isbell's discovery request.

On July 24, 2006, the Madison County district attorney filed a petition for a writ of mandamus in the Court of Criminal Appeals, seeking a writ directing the circuit court to vacate its discovery order. DFS filed an amicus curiae brief in support of the district attorney's petition. Isbell filed a motion to strike DFS's amicus brief. The Court of Criminal Appeals denied Isbell's motion and stayed the proceedings in the circuit court.

On October 20, 2006, the Court of Criminal Appeals transferred the petition to the Court of Civil Appeals. State v. Isbell, 955 So.2d 476 (Ala.Crim.App.2006). After considering three cases from this Court dealing with appellate jurisdiction in proceedings arising from criminal cases — Ex parte McNabb, 879 So.2d 1166 (Ala.2003); Ex parte Smith, 794 So.2d 1089 (Ala.2001); and Ex parte Galanos, 796 So.2d 390 (Ala. 2000) — the Court of Criminal Appeals reasoned that it lacked jurisdiction over the petition because Isbell's right to a fair trial was not implicated, the parties agreed that he was entitled to the requested information, and the only issue was whether DFS or Isbell would bear the costs and responsibility of collecting and copying the data.¹

On February 23, 2007, the Court of Civil Appeals transferred the petition back to the Court of Criminal Appeals. After analyzing the same three cases from this Court considered by the Court of Criminal Appeals in its opinion transferring the petition, the Court of Civil Appeals reasoned that a retransfer was appropriate because

"the primary issue presented by the State's petition requires a decision regarding the extent of the discovery obligation imposed upon the State by the Alabama Rules of Criminal Procedure and applicable caselaw. That is not an issue for adjudication in a declaratory-judgment action and a subsequent appeal to this court; that is an issue for adjudication by the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals on a mandamus petition because it falls within that court's appellate jurisdiction. See Ala. Const. 1901, Amend. No. 328, § 6.03(d)."

State v. Isbell, 985 So.2d 441, 445 (Ala.Civ. App.2007).

On April 11, 2007, the presiding judge of the Court of Criminal Appeals petitioned this Court to accept the transfer of this case pursuant to § 12-3-14, Ala.Code 1975, for resolution of the jurisdictional question. On April 19, 2007, this Court ordered the petition to be transferred to it for hearing and final determination.

II. The Jurisdictional Question

In Ex parte Galanos, we held that a proceeding after the conclusion of the criminal case seeking payment of attorney fees for representing an indigent defendant was a civil matter as to which the Court of Criminal Appeals did not have appellate jurisdiction. 796 So.2d at 393. In Ex parte Smith, the State and the defendant disagreed over whether a videotape containing the defendant's confession should be paid for in advance by the defendant subject to a claim for reimbursement or delivered to the defendant without charge. The defendant filed a petition for a writ of mandamus in this Court, asking us to vacate a writ of mandamus issued by the Court of Criminal Appeals directing the circuit court to vacate its order requiring that the defendant be provided a free copy of the videotape. We held that the defendant's petition for a writ of mandamus fell within the jurisdiction of the Court of Civil Appeals because the Court of Criminal Appeals did not have jurisdiction over an appeal as to a monetary dispute. We therefore issued the writ of mandamus and directed the Court of Criminal Appeals to vacate the writ it had issued. 794 So.2d at 1092-93.

Justice Johnstone dissented from the rationale in Ex parte Smith, noting:

"Amendment 328, § 6.03, Alabama Constitution of 1901, ... provides, in pertinent part, that the Court of Criminal Appeals has original jurisdiction `in the issuance and determination of writs of ... mandamus in relation to matters in which said court has appellate jurisdiction.' This capital murder case was a `matter[ ] in which said court has appellate jurisdiction,' and the dispute over this circuit court production order at issue was `in relation to' that very matter."

794 So.2d at 1093 (Johnstone, J., concurring in the judgment but dissenting from the rationale) (emphasis added). Justice Johnstone was correct in that, at the time the petition was pending in Ex parte Smith, there was an ongoing criminal prosecution and any appeal would go to the Court of Criminal Appeals. Consequently, Ex parte Smith involved the issuance of a writ of mandamus in relation to a matter as to which the Court of Criminal Appeals had appellate jurisdiction. We therefore expressly overrule Ex parte Smith, and, in so doing, we hold that the Court of Criminal Appeals was the proper forum for resolution of the dispute made the basis of this mandamus proceeding because there is a pending criminal proceeding and any appeal from that proceeding would be to that court.

Our holding today does not require us to revisit Ex parte Galanos because that case upheld jurisdiction in the Court of Civil Appeals where the dispute related to payment of attorney fees after the criminal proceeding had been concluded. Furthermore, we do not reach a result inconsistent with Ex parte McNabb, which also stemmed from a pending criminal proceeding. McNabb involved the payment of the transcript of the first trial, which had ended in a mistrial. The Court of Criminal Appeals transferred McNabb's petition to this Court to determine whether the Court of Criminal Appeals had jurisdiction to issue writs of mandamus addressing the payment of extraordinary expenses. In McNabb, we recognized jurisdiction in the Court of Criminal Appeals because the right of a defendant to a fair trial if the requested transcript was not made available implicated an issue as to which that court had appellate jurisdiction. 879 So.2d at 1169.²

III. The Merits of Isbell's Petition

A. Standard of Review

As we stated in Ex parte Land, 775 So.2d 847, 850 (Ala.2000):

"We begin with the rule that `mandamus is a drastic and extraordinary writ that will be issued only when there is: (1) a clear legal right in the petitioner to the order sought; (2) an imperative duty upon the respondent to perform, accompanied by a refusal to do so; (3) the lack of another adequate remedy; and (4) properly invoked jurisdiction of the court.' Ex parte Horton, 711 So.2d 979 (Ala.1998) (citations omitted). This Court has held that a petition for the writ of mandamus is the proper means for seeking appellate review of a trial court's discovery order. Ex parte Monk, 557 So.2d 832 (Ala.1989)."

B. Analysis

Isbell states the issue to be whether his attorney will be required to drive to Calera to obtain DFS records or whether DFS will use the services of the United States Postal Service, e-mail, or a facsimile machine to provide records to Isbell. The district attorney contends that because the circuit court directed DFS to turn over to Isbell the complete history of malfunctions, repairs, or reports of malfunctions on the Draeger brand device known as ARMM-0423, DFS will be required to research, inspect, identify, copy, and assemble the subject materials and deliver them to Isbell's attorney. A representative of DFS testified that compliance with the trial court's order would be unduly burdensome, requiring the attention of all nine scientists on staff, thereby effectively "shutting down" DFS for the time it takes to produce the materials requested by Isbell. That representative also testified that DFS will be "shut down" if it receives "a number of requests." He stated: "If we get a court order that we must supply you with all this information for this everyone in the state will want all this information for every case. It's...