Colvin v. State

After a jury trial, Roderick Colvin was convicted of felony murder and other crimes. Colvin later filed a motion to correct an illegal sentence pursuant to Maryland Rule 4-345(a). In this motion Colvin argued, for the first time, that the verdicts supporting his convictions were not unanimous, in violation of Maryland Rule 4-327(a), because the jury foreperson was not polled individually after she announced the jury’s verdicts. The circuit court denied the motion, determining, as a preliminary matter, that the alleged defect in the polling process was not a cognizable claim under Maryland Rule 4-345(a). The court of special appeals affirmed, ruling that the claim was cognizable but failed on its merits. The Court of Appeals vacated the judgment of the court of special appeals, holding that the procedural error alleged in this case did not come within the narrow meaning of Rule 4-345(a) and, therefore, was not a cognizable claim under the rule. View "Colvin v. State" on Justia Law