Title: Desmond v. State

State: delaware

Issuer: Delaware Supreme Court

Document:

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE 
 
CHRISTOPHER R. DESMOND, 
 
Defendant Below, 
Appellant, 
 
v. 
 
STATE OF DELAWARE, 
 
Appellee. 
§ 
§  No. 277, 2022 
§ 
§  Court Below—Superior Court 
§  of the State of Delaware 
§   
§  Cr. ID No. 91009844DI (N)  
§  
§ 
§ 
 
 
 
 
 
Submitted:   October 18, 2022 
 
 
 
 
Decided: 
October 31, 2022 
 
Before SEITZ, Chief Justice; VALIHURA and VAUGHN, Justices. 
 
 
 
ORDER 
 
After careful consideration of the appellant’s opening brief, the State’s motion 
to affirm, the appellant’s motion to strike, and the record on appeal, we conclude 
that the judgment below should be affirmed on the basis of the Superior Court’s 
order, dated July 11, 2022, denying the appellant’s motion seeking reargument or 
relief from the Superior Court’s order, dated May 4, 2022, which summarily 
dismissed the appellant’s sixteenth motion for postconviction relief as procedurally 
barred. 
The appellant’s motion to strike the State’s motion to affirm is denied.  
Supreme Court Rule 25(a) provides that “[m]otions to affirm may be filed in appeals 
of criminal matters other than direct appeals of convictions after trial and timely first 
2 
 
motions for postconviction relief under Superior Court Criminal Rule 61 when there 
was a conviction after trial.”1  Superior Court Criminal Rule 57 provides that in 
criminal proceedings the court may apply the Superior Court Civil Rules to 
procedural matters that are not addressed by the Superior Court Criminal Rules.  
Contrary to the appellant’s assertion, however, his filing of a motion for reargument 
under Superior Court Civil Rule 59(e) or for relief under Superior Court Rule 60(b) 
did not convert this matter from a “criminal matter,” in which Supreme Court Rule 
25(a) applies, to an appeal from a “civil judgment” in which it does not. 
NOW, THEREFORE, IT IS ORDERED that the appellant’s motion to strike 
the motion to affirm is DENIED.  The motion to affirm is GRANTED and the 
judgment of the Superior Court is AFFIRMED. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
BY THE COURT: 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
/s/ Karen L. Valihura 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Justice 
 
1 DEL. SUPR. CT. R. 25(a).