State v. Molina; State v. Rucker; State v. Sterling; State v. Castro, 187 N.J. 531

Summary

The Supreme Court of New Jersey addresses when criminal defendants may obtain leave to file an appeal as within time after missing the ordinary appeal deadline. It holds that defendants properly advised of their appeal rights generally are not entitled to such relief, except upon proof that they timely requested an appeal and counsel failed to prosecute it; defendants not advised of their appeal rights may obtain relief if they apply within five years of sentencing. The court also requires written appeal-rights forms to be completed and retained as part of the sentencing process, and affirms the relief granted to the four defendants.

Holdings

1. A defendant who was advised of the right to appeal as required by Rule 3:21-4(h) and failed to prosecute the appeal timely is presumptively not entitled to leave to appeal as within time. Relief may nevertheless be granted if the defendant proves, through the defendant's own certification and by a preponderance of the credible evidence, that the defendant timely requested an appeal and counsel failed to prosecute it.
2. A defendant who was not advised of the right to appeal as required by Rule 3:21-4(h) is entitled to leave to appeal as within time if the sentencing transcript confirms the omission and the application is filed no later than five years after sentencing.
3. The forty-five-day appeal period in Rule 2:4-1, together with the possible thirty-day extension in Rule 2:4-4(a), satisfies the constitutional requirement that criminal defendants receive a meaningful opportunity to be heard.
4. As an interim supervisory measure, sentencing courts must provide defendants with a written appeal-rights form, completed in duplicate by the defendant and counsel, review the form with the defendant, confirm on the record that the defendant understands the appellate rights, and retain one executed copy in the court file while the defendant retains the other.

Questions Presented

1. When and under what circumstances may a criminal defendant obtain leave to appeal as within time after the ordinary appeal period has expired?
2. Whether the forty-five-day appeal period under Rule 2:4-1(a), together with the possible thirty-day extension under Rule 2:4-4(a), provides criminal defendants a constitutionally meaningful opportunity to appeal.
3. Whether the court should require a written appeal-rights form and related sentencing procedures to ensure that defendants understand their appellate rights.

Disposition

affirmed