Title: Stevenson v. State
Citation: N/A
Docket Number: 502, 2003
State: Delaware
Issuer: Delaware Supreme Court
Date: November 14, 2003

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE 
 
DAVID STEVENSON, 
 
Defendant Below- 
Appellant, 
 
v. 
 
STATE OF DELAWARE, 
 
Plaintiff Below- 
Appellee. 
§ 
§ 
§  No. 502, 2003 
§ 
§ 
§  Court BelowSuperior Court 
§  of the State of Delaware, 
§  in and for New Castle County 
§  Cr. ID 9511006992 
§   
§ 
 
 
 
 
 
Submitted: October 22, 2003 
 
 
 
 
   Decided: November 14, 2003 
 
 
 
Upon consideration of the State’s motion to dismiss.  DENIED. 
 
 
Jerome M. Capone, Esquire, Wilmington, Delaware for appellant, 
David Stevenson. 
 
 
Loren C. Meyers, Esquire, Department of Justice, Wilmington, 
Delaware for appellee, State of Delaware. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
HOLLAND, Justice:  
 
2
The appellant, David Stevenson, filed this appeal from the Superior 
Court’s denial of his motion for postconviction relief.  The State has filed a 
motion to dismiss the appeal on the ground that it is interlocutory.  Stevenson 
has filed a response in opposition to the motion to dismiss. 
The record reflects that a Superior Court jury convicted Stevenson and 
his codefendant, Michael Manley,1 of first degree murder and related 
offenses.  This Court affirmed Manley’s2 and Stevenson’s3 convictions and 
death sentences on direct appeal.  The Superior Court denied Manley’s and 
Stevenson’s subsequent petitions for postconviction relief; however, this 
Court reversed those judgments on appeal.4   
Among other things, we held that both Manley and Stevenson were 
entitled to a new penalty hearing before a different judge.  Before holding the 
new penalty hearing, however, we directed the new judge to “first consider 
the reasserted postconviction petitions in order to determine whether relief 
involving the guilt phase is also required.”5  The Superior Court held an 
                                                 
1 Manley has filed a separate appeal from the Superior Court’s denial of 
postconviction relief.  The Court has issued an order denying a similar motion to dismiss 
filed by the State in that case.  Manley v. State, Del. Supr., No. 519, 2003, Holland, J. 
(Nov. 14, 2003). 
2 Manley v. State, 709 A.2d 643 (Del. 1998). 
3 Stevenson v. State, 709 A.2d 619 (Del. 1998). 
4 Stevenson v. State, 782 A.2d 249 (Del. 2001). 
5 Id. at 261. 
 
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evidentiary hearing and issued its decision denying Manley’s and Stevenson’s 
reasserted postconviction claims on October 2, 2003. 
The State has filed a motion to dismiss Stevenson’s appeal on the 
ground that it is interlocutory.  The State contends that the Superior Court’s 
October 2, 2003 decision is not final because Stevenson has not been 
resentenced yet.  The State argues that Stevenson’s appeal of his 
postconviction claims must wait until the new penalty proceedings are 
completed.  Stevenson has filed a response in opposition to the State’s 
motion. 
 
After careful consideration of the parties’ respective positions, the 
Court has determined that the motion to dismiss must be denied.  The State is 
correct that this Court only has jurisdiction to review a final order in a 
criminal case.6  In the case of a direct criminal appeal, the trial court’s final 
order in the case is the imposition of sentence.7  This is not Stevenson’s direct 
appeal, however.  Stevenson has appealed the Superior Court’s judgment on 
his reasserted postconviction petition.  Pursuant to Supreme Court Rule 
6(a)(iii), a notice of appeal in a postconviction proceeding shall be filed 
“[w]ithin 30 days after entry upon the docket of a judgment or order in any 
                                                 
6 DEL. CONST. art. IV, § 11(1)(b). 
7 See Rash v. State, 318 A.2d 603, 604-05 (Del. 1974). 
 
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proceeding for post-conviction relief.”  In this case, Stevenson filed his notice 
of appeal within 30 days of the Superior Court’s order denying postconviction 
relief.  Accordingly, the Court has jurisdiction to consider this postconviction 
appeal.   
  The motion to dismiss is DENIED.