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Huff v. State12/20/1991
of
the denial of a double jeopardy defense, coupled with the denial in petitioner's case of leave to apply for a writ of prohibition, operated to deny petitioner's constitutional rights. In opposition to certiorari, Texas argued that Abney was merely an exercise by the Court of its supervisory power over federal criminal prosecutions. Justice Brennan said:
"It is true that the Court had no need to reach the constitutional question presented in the instant case when it decided Abney, but the Court's recognition in Abney that double jeopardy claims not considered prior to trial are rendered, in significant part, moot surely has significant constitutional overtones. We have never held that the Federal Constitution requires that a State provide appellate review. But once such review is provided, it may not be denied arbitrarily without violating the Equal Protection Clause. Fundamental precepts of due process require a right to be heard 'at a meaningful time' before suffering a grievous loss. Thus, there is surely a good deal of force to petitioner's argument that, if the State provides for appeals to protect other constitutional rights, it runs afoul of the Federal Constitution when it fails to give the same meaningful consideration to a defendant asserting his right not to be subjected to a second trial for the same offense."
455 U.S. at 973, 102 S.Ct. at 1483 (citations omitted).
There is a rational basis for allowing appeals under the collateral order doctrine to litigants in the circuit courts while denying that doctrine to litigants in cases appealable de novo from the District Court. Although, as with any legislative body's determination on an issue, individual legislators may have their individual motives, the historical reason most frequently assigned for perpetuating de novo appeals, following the creation of the District Court of Maryland, is to enable persons who could not afford a transcript of the record the opportunity to have adverse judgments rendered by the District Court subject to a second look. That is a legitimate State interest.
Nor does due process require the State to provide an immediate appeal in these District Court cases. As we have explained above, in most instances in which the defendant in a criminal case in the District Court wants the availability of an immediate appeal of a ruling on a nonfrivolous double jeopardy defense, that defendant will be able to demand a jury trial, remove the case to the circuit court, obtain a ruling there, and, if adverse, have a right of immediate appeal to the Court of Special Appeals. The problem under consideration concerns only the criminal defendant in the District Court who raises a double jeopardy defense there from which the defendant desires an immediate appeal, to be decided by a circuit court, without right to further review, and who, at the same time, seeks to preserve trial in the District Court on the merits if the defense fails.
The due process reality is that there is no significant motions practice in the District Court. Typically, a pretrial motion, if any, is heard on the date and at the time assigned for trial of the case. The practical result of not providing immediate appeals in District Court cases is that the case ordinarily can be tried and decided on the merits in less time than it would take for the Clerk of the District Court to transmit the case to the Clerk of a circuit court, had the District Court ruling on motion been immediately appealable.
Similarly, the defendant's interest in avoiding a second trial is not unconstitutionally infringed if state procedure does not provide an immediate appeal. In many minor cases a District Court
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