Brown v. Delaware

Defendant-appellant Ira Brown appealed a Superior Court order denying his first motion for post-conviction relief under Superior Court Criminal Rule 61. Brown raised two issues on appeal: (1) he was entitled to a new trial based on newly discovered evidence of misconduct at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (although Brown did not raise this claim in his Rule 61 motion because problems at the Examiner's Office did not come to light until almost a year after Brown filed his Rule 61 motion), the Delaware Supreme Court nonetheless considered this issue on appeal in the interests of justice); and (2) Brown argued the Superior Court erred in its 2012 denial of both his oral motion and his written motion to withdraw his guilty plea. The Supreme Court found that Brown's first claim had no merit. Further, Brown could have raised his second argument in his Rule 61 motion (or in a timely direct appeal) but did not. That argument was therefore waived and procedurally barred. The Court therefore affirmed the Superior Court's denial of post-conviction relief. View "Brown v. Delaware" on Justia Law