As a general matter, you must be a party to an action in order to appeal a court’s ruling. In a criminal case, the parties to the action are the defendant who is charged with the offense, and the State of Idaho which is prosecuting the charge. As appeal “as of right” means that a party is entitled to at least one stage of appellate review from a higher court. In Idaho, statutes and court rules define what types of rulings can be appealed as of right. [i]
For both felonies and misdemeanors, a criminal defendant has the right to appeal from the following types of orders:
- A final judgment of conviction (either upon a guilty plea or from a jury verdict of guilt)
- An order denying a withheld judgment on a verdict or plea of guilty
- An order denying a motion for a new trial
- Any order after a judgment that affects the substantial rights of the defendant
- Any other order for which the right to appeal is provided by statute
- An order or judgment of contempt
The State also has the right to appeal from certain types of judgments and orders. These include:
- An order granting a withheld judgment on a verdict or plea of guilty
- An order granting a motion to dismiss a complaint or information
- Any other order or judgment, whatever its label, that terminates a criminal action over the State’s objection; EXCEPT this does not authorize a State’s appeal where the constitutional protection against Double Jeopardy would be violated if a new trial is ordered [ii]
- Any order that reduces the criminal charge against a defendant over the State’s objection
- An order granting a defendant’s motion to suppress
- An order granting a motion for a new trial
- Any order following a judgment that affects the substantial rights of the State