People v. Bilbrey

by
A jury found Bilbrey guilty of attempted murder, aggravated mayhem, assault with a deadly weapon, and battery with serious bodily injury and found true knife-use and great-bodily-injury enhancements. The trial court sentenced Bilbrey to an aggregate term of 11 years to life. The court of appeal affirmed in 2013. In 2016, the trial court granted Bilbrey’s petition for a writ of habeas corpus, based upon the ineffectiveness of trial counsel, and ordered a new trial. The government filed a timely notice of appeal but did not seek to set a trial date, bring the case to trial, nor seek a stay of trial court proceedings. About four months later, Bilbrey moved to dismiss the information for violation of his speedy trial rights. The government argued its pending appeal deprived the trial court of jurisdiction to rule on that motion. The trial court dismissed. The court of appeal stayed the dismissal order pending resolution of the appeal from the habeas ruling; granted Bilbrey’s motion to expedite that appeal; and consolidated that appeal with the appeal from the dismissal. The court of appeal then affirmed the habeas corpus order and the order dismissing the case based on the violation of Bilbrey’s right to a speedy trial. View "People v. Bilbrey" on Justia Law