Opinion ID: 2655544
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Accused’s Responses to the Delay

Text: ¶50 Under the third speedy trial factor, the court evaluates the totality of the accused’s responses to the delay to ascertain “whether the accused actually wanted a speedy trial.” Ariegwe, ¶ 76. While an accused certainly has “‘no duty to bring himself to trial,’” Ariegwe, ¶ 82 (quoting Barker v. Wingo, 407 U.S. 514, 527, 92 S. Ct. 2182, 2190), the defendant’s responses to the delay nevertheless represent an important consideration in determining whether his or her right to a speedy trial has been violated, Ariegwe, ¶ 76, (citing Barker, 407 U.S. at 534, 92 S. Ct. at 2194). Thus, while failure to object to pretrial delay does not, by itself, establish that the accused did not want a speedy trial, “an absence in the record of any objections to delay will make it difficult for the accused to prove that he or she was denied a speedy trial.” Ariegwe, ¶ 82 (citing Barker, 407 U.S. at 532, 92 S. Ct. at 2193). ¶51 Redlich argues that he did not desire or benefit from any delay, and that the one period of delay that the District Court attributed to him was due to a personnel change at the Office of the Public Defender. However, the District Court noted that Redlich did not 20 object to the State’s motion to continue, and that he did not file his motion to dismiss on speedy trial grounds until one week before trial. Additionally, regarding the second period of delay, Redlich failed to return the omnibus order within the two-week deadline and, as a result, delayed the setting of the first trial date. Although the District Court ultimately attributed the entire second period of delay to the State due to the prosecutor’s failure to request a status hearing, the fact that Redlich did not return the omnibus order in time is indicative of his lack of concern for a speedy trial. Based on the totality of the evidence, the District Court found that Redlich’s response did not indicate a sincere desire to be brought to trial promptly.