State v. Hoxsie

[¶ 1.] A defendant died during the pen-dency of the appeal of his criminal action. The question before us is whether it should be dismissed on grounds of mootness or whether the action should be abated ab initio. We dismiss for mootness.

FACTS

[¶ 2.] James F. Hoxsie was indicted on charges of forgery, third-degree burglary, first-degree robbery, and commission of a felony while armed following his robbery of a Shop-N-Cart in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. He pled guilty to first-degree robbery; the remaining charges against him were dropped. He was sentenced to serve nineteen years in the state…