S. Ct. Civ. No. 2015-0079

In a petition for writ of mandamus filed by a defendant in a pending Superior Court criminal case, seeking a writ directing the judge currently presiding over that case to dismiss the pending criminal action for failure to provide a speedy trial, the petitioner has failed to meet his burden for entitlement to a writ of mandamus by showing that he has a clear and indisputable right to the writ and no other adequate means to attain the desired relief, and that the writ is appropriate under the circumstances. Where the purported ministerial duty of a judge is to issue legally-correct rulings, mandamus is only appropriate to correct judicial action that is clearly contrary to well-settled law - specifically, decisions that ignore clear, binding precedent from a court of superior jurisdiction. Here, the right of a speedy trial is necessarily relative and depends upon circumstances. Because speedy-trial claims are inherently fact-specific, mandamus may not be used to enforce a defendant's right to a speedy trial, and the merits of such claims should instead be considered on direct appeal. Accordingly, the petition for writ of mandamus is denied.