State v. Nickerson

Defendant was charged with felony burglary in 2007. The Flathead County District Court issued a warrant for Defendant’s arrest, but shortly afterward, Defendant was arrested and sentenced on unrelated federal charges. Defendant was subsequently committed to a federal correctional institution. In 2013, Defendant filed a pro se motion to dismiss the Flathead County arrest warrant, arguing that the county attorney’s failure to take action on his pending burglary charge violated his Sixth Amendment right to a speedy trial. The county attorney argued in response that Defendant’s motion must be denied because an inmate may invoke the provisions of the Interstate Agreement on Detainers Act (IAD) only after a detainer is filed. The District Court denied Defendant’s motion. The Supreme Court reversed, holding (1) Defendant’s motion was premised on an alleged denial of his constitutional right to a speedy trial, not the IAD; and (2) the district court improperly denied Defendant’s motion without addressing his speedy trial rights. Remanded. View "State v. Nickerson" on Justia Law