Court Opinion

ID: 9392540
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-05-05 14:05:43.00026+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:18:46.531805
License: Public Domain

RENDERED: APRIL 28, 2023; 10:00 A.M.
                         NOT TO BE PUBLISHED

                 Commonwealth of Kentucky
                           Court of Appeals

                               NO. 2021-CA-1338-MR

RODNEY YOUNG                                                            APPELLANT

                  APPEAL FROM LOGAN CIRCUIT COURT
v.              HONORABLE JOE W. HENDRICKS, JR., JUDGE
                        ACTION NO. 21-CR-00092

COMMONWEALTH OF KENTUCKY                                                   APPELLEE

                                     OPINION
                                    AFFIRMING

                                    ** ** ** ** **

BEFORE: CETRULO, JONES, AND MCNEILL, JUDGES.

MCNEILL, JUDGE: Rodney Young (“Young”) appeals from his final judgment

and sentence on a plea of guilty, arguing the judgment contains a clerical error

ordering him to pay court costs. For the reasons below, we affirm.

             On September 2, 2021, Young pleaded guilty to first-degree fleeing or

evading police, third-degree assault of a police officer, resisting arrest, third-degree

criminal mischief, second-degree burglary, and being a second-degree persistent
felony offender. At the sentencing hearing, the trial court imposed a sentence of

eighteen years’ imprisonment and waived court costs. When the trial court entered

its written judgment on Form AOC-445, it ordered court costs of $440.00 and then

waived those costs because it had found Young to be indigent.

                Young argues that by filling out the section on Form AOC-445

concerning court costs, rather than leaving it blank, the trial court contradicted its

oral judgment waiving court costs, which amounts to a clerical error warranting

correction. Young concedes that this issue was not preserved and requests

palpable error review. RCr1 10.10 permits a trial court to correct “[c]lerical

mistakes in judgments . . . arising from oversight or omission . . . at any time on its

own initiative or on the motion of any party . . . .” This includes during the

pendency of an appeal with leave of the appellate court.

                We first note it is questionable whether the trial court’s filling out

Form AOC-445’s section concerning court costs is even an “error” in need of

correction, as the trial court then waived those costs. But even assuming the

judgment contains a clerical error, we find no palpable error. As noted above, a

clerical error may be corrected at any time, even during the pendency of the appeal.

We are not aware of any effort made by Young to correct the alleged error while

1
    Kentucky Rules of Criminal Procedure.

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this appeal has been pending. As such, we cannot say any manifest injustice has

occurred. See Davis v. Commonwealth, 620 S.W.3d 16, 32 (Ky. 2021).

            Accordingly, the judgment of the Logan Circuit Court is affirmed.

            ALL CONCUR.

BRIEFS FOR APPELLANT:                    BRIEF FOR APPELLEE:

Adam Meyer                               Daniel Cameron
Frankfort, Kentucky                      Attorney General of Kentucky

                                         Melissa A. Pile
                                         Assistant Attorney General
                                         Frankfort, Kentucky

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