Sec. 54-95. Appeal by defendant in criminal prosecution; stay of execution.
Sec. 54-95. Appeal by defendant in criminal prosecution; stay of execution.
(a) Any defendant in a criminal prosecution, aggrieved by any decision of the Superior
Court, upon the trial thereof, or by any error apparent upon the record of such prosecution, may be relieved by appeal, petition for a new trial or writ of error, in the same
manner and with the same effect as in civil actions. No appeal may be taken from a
judgment denying a petition for a new trial unless, within ten days after the judgment
is rendered, the judge who heard the case or a judge of the Supreme Court or the Appellate
Court, as the case may be, certifies that a question is involved in the decision which
ought to be reviewed by the Supreme Court or by the Appellate Court. It shall be sufficient service of any such writ of error or petition for a new trial to serve it upon the
state's attorney for the judicial district where it is brought.
(b) When such defendant is convicted and sentenced to a term of imprisonment and,
within two weeks after final judgment, files with the clerk of the court wherein the
conviction was had an appeal to the Supreme Court or gives oral or written notice of
his intention to appeal to said court or to petition for a new trial, the appeal or the notice
shall operate as a stay of execution pending the final determination of the case, provided
the defendant is admitted to bail, except the appeal or the notice shall not operate as a
stay of execution, if within five days after the filing of the appeal or notice thereof, the
judge before whom the criminal prosecution was tried directs in writing that the appeal
or the notice shall not operate as a stay of execution. Such order shall be accompanied
by a written statement of the judge's reasons for denying the stay of execution. The
order and the statement shall become a part of the files and record of the case. If any
defendant has been admitted to bail following an oral or written notice of intent to appeal
or petition for a new trial and such defendant has failed, within twenty days after the
judgment from which the appeal is to be taken, or such further period as the court may
grant, to perfect the appeal or petition, a mittimus for his arrest shall issue. If any defendant is imprisoned after sentencing and before he is admitted to bail, such period of
imprisonment shall be counted toward satisfaction of his sentence. If any defendant is
admitted to bail and subsequently surrendered and remitted to custody while his appeal
is pending, the period of imprisonment following thereafter shall be counted toward
satisfaction of his sentence.
(c) In any criminal prosecution in which the defendant has been sentenced to death
and has taken an appeal to the Supreme Court of this state or the Supreme Court of the
United States or brought a writ of error, writ of certiorari or petition for a new trial, the
taking of the appeal, the making of the application for a writ of certiorari or the return
into court of the writ of error or petition for a new trial shall, unless, upon application
by the state's attorney and after hearing, the Supreme Court otherwise orders, stay the
execution of the death penalty until the clerk of the court where the trial was had has
received notification of the termination of any such proceeding by decision or otherwise,
and for thirty days thereafter. No appellate procedure shall be deemed to have terminated
until the end of the period allowed by law for the filing of a motion for reargument, or,
if such motion is filed, until the proceedings consequent thereon are finally determined.
When execution is stayed under the provisions of this section, the clerk of the court shall
forthwith give notice thereof to the warden of the institution in which such defendant is
in custody. If the original judgment of conviction has been affirmed or remains in full
force at the time when the clerk has received the notification of the termination of any
proceedings by appeal, writ of certiorari, writ of error or petition for a new trial, and
the day designated for the infliction of the death penalty has then passed or will pass
within thirty days thereafter, the defendant shall, within said period of thirty days, upon
an order of the court in which the judgment was rendered at a regular or special criminal
session thereof, be presented before said court by the warden of the institution in which
the defendant is in custody or his deputy, and the court, with the judge assigned to hold
the session presiding, shall thereupon designate a day for the infliction of the death
penalty and the clerk of the court shall issue a warrant of execution, reciting therein the
original judgment, the fact of the stay of execution and the final order of the court, which
warrant shall be forthwith served upon the warden or his deputy.
(1949 Rev., S. 8811; 1953, S. 3328d; 1957, P.A. 483; 1959, P.A. 474; 1963, P.A. 416, S. 1; 642, S. 73; 1972, P.A. 66,
S. 1; P.A. 76-336, S. 14; P.A. 78-280, S. 1, 127; 78-379, S. 22, 27; P.A. 80-313, S. 51; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 83-29, S. 51, 82.)
History: 1959 act amended Subsec. (b) to provide appeal operate as a stay "provided the defendant is admitted to bail
or makes an election in writing not to commence service of the sentence" and added provisions re filing of election not to
commence service and re factors determining when sentence is satisfied; 1963 acts amended Subsec. (a) to delete obsolete
references to the court of common pleas and amended Subsec. (b) to provide for filing of appeal two weeks after final
judgment rather than one week after conviction; 1972 act specified that notice of intention to appeal may be oral or written
and provision re issuance of mittimus for arrest of person who fails to perfect appeal within 20 days from judgment in
Subsec. (b); P.A. 76-336 replaced specific references to Somers correctional facility with general references to "institution
in which such defendant is in custody"; P.A. 78-280 substituted "judicial district" for "county" where appearing; P.A. 78-379 restated provision in Subsec. (b) re judge's direction that appeal shall not stay execution and deleted provisions re
defendant's power to elect not to commence service of sentence; P.A. 80-313 made minor changes in wording but made
no substantive changes; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 83-29 included reference to appellate court in Subsec. (a).
See Sec. 52-582 re time limit for bringing petitions for new trial.
Plaintiff in error may not be heard on any cause of error not specially assigned, but court finding fatal defect may reverse
the judgment. 10 C. 371. Petition for new trial not granted on merely formal grounds. 11 C. 418. True rule. Id.; 48 C. 93.
New evidence must be such as was not discoverable at former trial. Id. Power to grant new trial may be exercised when
verdict is without evidence or manifestly against weight of evidence. 12 C. 489. State cannot move for new trial. 16 C.
59; but see section 54-96. New trial for error in charge of court or for verdict against evidence can only be granted by
supreme court. 43 C. 516. New trial not granted on ex parte affidavits alone. 45 C. 272. Policy of law. 69 C. 190. See notes
to sections 52-270, 54-92. Accused may file motion for new trial for verdict against evidence. Id., 192. Law regulating
new trials same in criminal as in civil cases. 72 C. 116. Accused is entitled to every doubt as regards materiality of error.
75 C. 334. But he cannot complain of ruling that several counts state but one offense. Id., 267. Costs not taxable to defendant
who prevails. 82 C. 392. Supreme court cannot support judgment by presumption or intendment. 84 C. 93. Full discussion
of proper method of taking appeal in criminal case tried to court. 105 C. 327; 109 C. 28; Id., 126, 139. Does not permit
appeal from a city court in a criminal case. 128 C. 341. Cited. Id., 342. Time within which motions in arrest of judgment
must be filed. 148 C. 57. Where appeal period had expired, convict could not by habeas corpus proceeding challenge
validity of arrest warrant. By pleading to information against him, while represented by counsel, he waived defect in
warrant and consented to jurisdiction of court. 155 C. 591, 627, 701, 703. Defendant's decision to waive his right to appeal
must be voluntarily, knowingly and intelligently made. 175 C. 328. Denial of a motion for a new trial was not a final
judgment and not appealable. 180 C. 141. Remedy of appeal afforded defendants in criminal prosecutions having been
established by statute, state's delay in defending against appeal resulted in setting aside of the judgment and ordering of
a new trial. 183 C. 586. Cited. 194 C. 510. Cited. 208 C. 420. Cited. 228 C. 552. Cited. 236 C. 388.
Cited. 1 CA 724. Cited. 12 CA 621. Cited. 19 CA 686. Cited. 37 CA 252; judgment reversed, see 236 C. 388. Cited.
41 CA 530. Statutory requirement that court make a determination that ruling on a motion to suppress or dismiss would
be dispositive of the case is a matter of substance necessary to achieve goals of statute and therefore is mandatory. 87 CA
122. Denial of petition for certification made pursuant to section is not a bar to this court's jurisdiction, but is a threshold
issue on appeal. 88 CA 572.
Term "execution" means "to put into effect". 15 CS 273. Cited. 24 CS 60. Cited. 29 CS 339.
Cited. 2 Conn. Cir. Ct. 635. Cited. 5 Conn. Cir. Ct. 314.
Subsec. (a):
Cited. 183 C. 418. Cited. 229 C. 178; Id., 397. Since legislature did not expressly prohibit appellate review of the denial
of certification to appeal, petitioner is entitled to appellate review of such denial. Petitioner may establish an abuse of
discretion in such denial if there are issues that are debatable among jurists of reason, if a court could resolve the issues
in a different manner or if there are questions that are adequate to deserve encouragement to proceed further. 246 C. 514.
Although petitioner's failure to seek certification to appeal pursuant to the statute does not deprive appellate tribunal of
jurisdiction over the appeal, appellate tribunal should nevertheless decline to entertain an appeal challenging denial of
petition for a new trial until petitioner has satisfied the certification requirement of the statute. 261 C. 533.
Cited. 23 CA 559.
Subsec. (b):
Cited. 38 CS 552. Cited. 41 CS 454.