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State of Minnesota, Appellant, vs. Dennis Gordon Lee, Respondent. A04-1402, Supreme Court, December 8, 2005.

STATE OF MINNESOTA IN SUPREME COURT A04-1402 Court of Appeals Meyer, J. Concurring, Page, J. State of Minnesota, Appellant, vs. Filed: December 8, 2005 Office of Appellate Courts Dennis Gordon Lee, Respondent. SYLLABUS Under the rules of criminal procedure, an order for a stay of adjudication is a pretrial order appealable by the state, even though it includes the imposition of jail time. The district court may order a stay of adjudication over the prosecutor's objection when there has been a clear abuse of discretion by the prosecutor in the exercise of the charging function. Reversed and remanded to the district court for sentencing. Heard, considered, and decided by the court en banc. OPINION MEYER, Justice. This case concerns the state's right to appeal from an order for a stay of adjudication on misdemeanor charges, entered by the district court over the objection of the state. The court of appeals rejected the state's appeal, specifically concluding that an order for a stay of adjudication that includes jail time to be served is a sentence and a misdemeanor sentence is not appealable under Minn. R. Crim. P. 28.04. State v. Lee, 693 N.W.2d 216, 219 (Minn. App. 2005). We reverse and remand to the district court for sentencing. Respondent Dennis Gordon Lee pleaded guilty on June 21, 2004, to two misdemeanors: violation of Minn. Stat.

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