Opinion ID: 2321831
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: M.R.Crim. P. 1(c)

Text: [¶ 7] Rule 1(c) of the Maine Rules of Criminal Procedure provides: When no procedure is specifically prescribed the court shall proceed in any lawful manner not inconsistent with the Constitution of the United States or of the State of Maine, these rules or any applicable statutes. [¶ 8] A core requirement for application of Rule 1(c) is that no other procedure be specifically prescribed. Here, another procedure is specifically prescribed because, as we have previously held, the post-conviction review process is a single, unified system of post-conviction relief. State v. Blakesley, 2010 ME 19, ¶ 23, 989 A.2d 746, 751 (quotation marks omitted); see also State v. Ngo, 2007 ME 2, ¶ 6, 912 A.2d 1224, 1226. Because the post-conviction relief statute and rules do specifically prescribe the process for asserting that a sentence has been unlawfully imposed, 15 M.R.S. § 2125, Rule 1(c) does not provide a jurisdictional basis for the court to consider Chesnel's motion. See Ngo, 2007 ME 2, ¶ 6, 912 A.2d at 1226; see also Blakesley, 2010 ME 19, ¶ 24, 989 A.2d at 752.