Title: Christopher v. State

State: delaware

Issuer: Delaware Supreme Court

Document:

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE 
 
PHILIP A. CHRISTOPHER,  
 
 
Defendant Below, 
 
Appellant, 
 
v. 
 
STATE OF DELAWARE,  
 
            
Plaintiff Below, 
 
Appellee. 
§ 
§  No. 495, 2012 
§ 
§ 
§  Court Below─Superior Court of 
§  the State of Delaware, in and 
§  for New Castle County 
§  Cr. ID No. 0603012551 
§ 
§ 
§ 
 
 
 
 
 
Submitted: September 24, 2012 
 
Decided:  
September 28, 2012 
 
Before HOLLAND, JACOBS and RIDGELY, Justices 
 
 
 
 
 
 
O R D E R  
 
 
This 28th day of September 2012, it appears to the Court that: 
 
(1) On September 7, 2012, the Court received the appellant’s notice 
of appeal from the August 9, 2012 order of the Superior Court 
Commissioner recommending denial of his motion for postconviction relief.  
On September 11, 2012, the Clerk issued a notice pursuant to Supreme 
Court Rule 29(b) directing the appellant to show cause why the appeal 
should not be dismissed based on this Court’s lack of jurisdiction to consider 
an appeal directly from the decision of a Superior Court Commissioner.1 
                                                 
1 Super. Ct. Crim. R. 62. 
 
2
 
(2) On September 24, 2012, the appellant filed a response to the 
notice to show cause.  In the response, the appellant re-states the issues that 
he presented to the Superior Court Commissioner and further states that all 
of the issues are constitutional in nature.  The appellant does not address the 
issue of this Court’s jurisdiction.   
 
(3) This Court lacks jurisdiction to consider an appeal directly from a 
decision of a Superior Court Commissioner.2  As such, this appeal must be 
dismissed.3 
 
NOW, THEREFORE, IT IS ORDERED, pursuant to Supreme Court 
Rule 29(b), that this appeal is DISMISSED. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
BY THE COURT: 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
/s/ Jack B. Jacobs 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Justice 
 
 
                                                 
2 Id. 
3 The appellant may file a timely appeal in this Court once the Superior Court issues its 
final order in his case.