State v. Jason James Melchor ( 2014 )


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  •                IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF IDAHO
    Docket No. 41812
    STATE OF IDAHO,                                  )     2014 Unpublished Opinion No. 794
    )
    Plaintiff-Respondent,                     )     Filed: November 3, 2014
    )
    v.                                               )     Stephen W. Kenyon, Clerk
    )
    JASON JAMES MELCHOR,                             )     THIS IS AN UNPUBLISHED
    )     OPINION AND SHALL NOT
    Defendant-Appellant.                      )     BE CITED AS AUTHORITY
    )
    Appeal from the District Court of the Fourth Judicial District, State of Idaho, Ada
    County. Hon. Michael E. Wetherell, District Judge.
    Judgment of conviction and unified sentence of twenty years, with a minimum
    period of confinement of five and one-half years, for lewd conduct with a minor
    under sixteen years of age, affirmed; order denying I.C.R. 35 motion for reduction
    of sentence, affirmed.
    Sara B. Thomas, State Appellate Public Defender; Brian R. Dickson, Deputy
    Appellate Public Defender, Boise, for appellant.
    Hon. Lawrence G. Wasden, Attorney General; Lori A. Fleming, Deputy Attorney
    General, Boise, for respondent.
    ________________________________________________
    Before GUTIERREZ, Chief Judge; LANSING, Judge;
    and MELANSON, Judge
    PER CURIAM
    Jason James Melchor pled guilty to lewd conduct with a minor under sixteen years of
    age. I.C. § 18-1508. In exchange for his guilty plea, additional charges were dismissed. The
    district court sentenced Melchor to a unified term of twenty years, with a minimum period of
    confinement of five and one-half years. Melchor filed an I.C.R 35 motion, which the district
    court denied. Melchor appeals.
    Sentencing is a matter for the trial court’s discretion. Both our standard of review and the
    factors to be considered in evaluating the reasonableness of the sentence are well established.
    See State v. Hernandez, 
    121 Idaho 114
    , 117-18, 
    822 P.2d 1011
    , 1014-15 (Ct. App. 1991); State
    1
    v. Lopez, 
    106 Idaho 447
    , 449-51, 
    680 P.2d 869
    , 871-73 (Ct. App. 1984); State v. Toohill, 
    103 Idaho 565
    , 568, 
    650 P.2d 707
    , 710 (Ct. App. 1982). When reviewing the length of a sentence,
    we consider the defendant’s entire sentence. State v. Oliver, 
    144 Idaho 722
    , 726, 
    170 P.3d 387
    ,
    391 (2007). Applying these standards, and having reviewed the record in this case, we cannot
    say that the district court abused its discretion.
    Next, we review whether the district court erred in denying Melchor’s Rule 35 motion. A
    motion for reduction of sentence under I.C.R. 35 is essentially a plea for leniency, addressed to
    the sound discretion of the court. State v. Knighton, 
    143 Idaho 318
    , 319, 
    144 P.3d 23
    , 24 (2006);
    State v. Allbee, 
    115 Idaho 845
    , 846, 
    771 P.2d 66
    , 67 (Ct. App. 1989). In presenting a Rule 35
    motion, the defendant must show that the sentence is excessive in light of new or additional
    information subsequently provided to the district court in support of the motion.        State v.
    Huffman, 
    144 Idaho 201
    , 203, 
    159 P.3d 838
    , 840 (2007). In conducting our review of the grant
    or denial of a Rule 35 motion, we consider the entire record and apply the same criteria used for
    determining the reasonableness of the original sentence. State v. Forde, 
    113 Idaho 21
    , 22, 
    740 P.2d 63
    , 64 (Ct. App. 1987); 
    Lopez, 106 Idaho at 449-51
    , 680 P.2d at 871-73. Upon review of
    the record, we conclude no abuse of discretion has been shown.
    Therefore, Melchor’s judgment of conviction and sentence, and the district court’s order
    denying Melchor’s Rule 35 motion, are affirmed.
    2