NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER


NO. 29596






IN THE INTERMEDIATE COURT OF APPEALS

OF THE STATE OF HAWAI‘I






STATE OF HAWAI‘I, Plaintiff-Appellee, v.
MICHAEL C. TIERNEY, Defendant-Appellant




APPEAL FROM THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIRST CIRCUIT
(CR. NO. 08-1-0869)





ORDER DISMISSING APPEAL
FOR LACK OF APPELLATE JURISDICTION
(By: Foley, Presiding Judge, Fujise and Leonard, JJ.)

Upon review of the record for this case, it appears that we lack jurisdiction over Defendant-Appellant Michael Tierney's (Appellant Tierney) appeal from a criminal case, the Honorable Richard K. Perkins presiding, in which a jury found Appellant Tierney guilty of theft in the second degree in violation of Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS) § 708-831 (Supp. 2007) and burglary in the second degree in violation of HRS § 708-811 (1993), because the circuit court has not yet sentenced Appellant Tierney.

Pursuant to HRS § 641-11 (Supp. 2008), "[a]ny party aggrieved by the judgment of a circuit court in a criminal matter may appeal to the intermediate appellate court, subject to chapter 602, in the manner and within the time provided by the rules of the court." However, under HRS § 641-11, "[t]he sentence of the court in a criminal case shall be the judgment." The circuit court has not yet entered any sentence against Appellant Tierney, and, thus, HRS § 641-11 does not authorize Appellant Tierney's appeal at this time. State v. Johnston, 63 Haw. 9, 11, 619 P.2d 1076, 1077 (1980).

Absent an appealable judgment, Appellant Tierney's appeal is premature and we lack jurisdiction. Accordingly,

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that this appeal is dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.

DATED: Honolulu, Hawai‘i, April 30, 2009.