State v. Pierce

Defendant was charged with second-degree trafficking and resisting arrest. Defendant’s first trial ended in a mistrial. After a retrial, Defendant was found guilty of the charges. On appeal, Defendant argued, among other things, that the trial court lacked the authority to retry him after the end of the court term following the term in which his earlier trial ended in a mistrial. The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant’s conviction for resisting arrest and vacated Defendant’s conviction for second-degree trafficking, holding (1) the trial court had the authority to retry Defendant after the deadline had passed because Defendant failed to assert that deadline when it was still possible for the trial court to comply; (2) the trial court erred in not giving Defendant’s requested instruction regarding possession as a lesser included offense of second-degree trafficking; and (3) the evidence was sufficient to support Defendant’s conviction for resisting arrest. View "State v. Pierce" on Justia Law