Ray v. State

MAXWELL, J.,

for the Court:

¶ 1. Perfecting an appeal from a justice-court criminal conviction requires filing a notice of appeal and two bonds — (1) a “cost bond” to secure estimate costs, and (2) an “appearance bond” conditioned on the defendant’s appearance pending the appeal’s conclusion. Because of the distinct purposes for each bond, failure to file either is grounds for dismissal. Following Robert J. Ray’s conviction of simple assault in justice court, Ray filed with the county court a notice of appeal and a single “appeal bond.” Both the county court and circuit court dismissed Ray’s…