Madison Circuit Court, CC-13-2404.70; Court of Criminal
Appeals, CR-17-0619
PETITION FOR WRIT OF CERTIORARI TO THE COURT OF
CRIMINAL APPEALS
MENDHEIM, Justice.
Crystal
Joetta Wayne petitioned this Court for a writ of certiorari
to review the Court of Criminal Appeals' decision
affirming, by an unpublished memorandum, the Madison Circuit
Court's revocation of Wayne's probation. See
Wayne v. State (No. CR-17-0619, August 24, 2018),
__So. 3d__ (Ala.Crim.App.2018) (table). We granted certiorari
review to consider whether Wayne's due-process rights
were violated in the revocation of her probation.
Specifically, we granted certiorari review to consider
whether Wayne received adequate notice of the State's
charge that Wayne had violated her probation by absconding.
For the following reasons, we reverse the Court of Criminal
Appeals' judgment.
Facts
and Procedural History
On
March 15, 2017, Wayne was convicted of second-degree
manufacturing of a controlled substance, see §
13A-12-217, Ala. Code 1975, a Class B felony. The Madison
Circuit Court ("the circuit court") sentenced Wayne
to 60 months' imprisonment, which sentence was split, and
she was ordered to serve 18 months' imprisonment,
followed by 36 months' supervised probation. The circuit
court further ordered Wayne to pay $4, 799 in various fees
and costs.
On July
31, 2017, Wayne's probation officer filed a delinquency
report alleging that Wayne had violated the terms and
conditions of her probation by failing to report to her
probation officer as directed, by failing to pay supervision
fees, by failing to pay court-ordered moneys, and by failing
to report to the court referral officer ("CRO").
On
December 14, 2017, the circuit court conducted an
initial-appearance hearing. During the hearing, the circuit
court informed Wayne that she was being charged with
violating the terms and conditions of her probation "by
failing to report, failing to pay monthly supervision fees,
failing to pay other court-ordered fines and monies and
failing to successfully complete the Court Referral
Program." Wayne denied having violated the terms and
conditions of her probation. Accordingly, the circuit court
set the matter for a probation-revocation hearing scheduled
for March 21, 2018. The circuit court specifically instructed
Wayne "that if you want to go any direction other than
to prison, you have to report between now and the time we
come back."
On
March 21, 2018, the circuit court conducted the
probation-revocation hearing. Wayne did not appear at the
hearing, and, over the objection of Wayne's trial
counsel, the circuit court conducted the probation-revocation
hearing without her being present. At the conclusion of the
probation-revocation hearing, the circuit court stated that
it "is reasonably satisfied that [Wayne] has violated
her probation with regard to the failing-to-report charge and
with regard to failing to successfully complete the Court
Referral Program." The circuit court stated:
"With regard to the failure to report, [Wayne] did not
-- has not reported since May 5[, 2017]. When we had her in
court on December 14[, 2017], I emphasized and kind of
lecture people when I order them to resume reporting. The
people that have failure-to-report charges as part of their
probation violations, I really heavily emphasize if you
don't go and report now you're going to prison. And
she didn't get that message at all because she continued
to not report. The length of time that this person did not
report, especially after the court's warning amounts to
absconding.
"That is left to the judge to decide when at some point
failure to report moves to the level of absconding and in
this particular case, the court finds that this is
absconding."
On the
same day, the circuit court entered an order revoking
Wayne's probationary status on the basis that the court
was "reasonably satisfied ... that [Wayne] violated the
rules of probation, specifically: Charge No. 5, 'Failure
to Report -- Absconding'[, and] Charge No. 13,
'Failure to Report to CRO.'" Wayne was ordered
to serve the balance of her 60-month sentence.
On
March 26, 2018, Wayne filed a motion to alter, amend, or
vacate the circuit court's order revoking her probation.
Among other things, Wayne argued that she had not received
notice that she was being charged with absconding. Wayne
argued that the failure to provide notice violated her
due-process rights. On March 27, 2018, the circuit court
denied Wayne's postjudgment motion.
Wayne
appealed to the Court of Criminal Appeals, which affirmed the
circuit court's March 21, 2018, order revoking
Wayne's probation, by an unpublished memorandum.
Wayne, supra. The Court of Criminal Appeals did not
consider Wayne's argument that her due-process rights had
been violated by the failure to provide notice that she was
being charged with absconding.
Standard
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