Andra Brown v. Commonwealth of Kentucky

── Andra Brown v. Commonwealth of Kentucky ── Court: Court of Appeals of Kentucky Date: May 08, 2026 Author: Karem Category: General RENDERED: MAY 8, 2026; 10:00 A.M. NOT TO BE PUBLISHED Commonwealth of Kentucky Court of Appeals NO. 2025-CA-1096-MR ANDRA BROWN APPELLANT APPEAL FROM FAYETTE CIRCUIT COURT v. HONORABLE THOMAS L. TRAVIS, JUDGE CASE NO. 24-CR-00768 COMMONWEALTH OF KENTUCKY APPELLEE OPINION AFFIRMING ** ** ** ** ** BEFORE: A. JONES, KAREM, AND MOYNAHAN, JUDGES. KAREM, JUDGE: Andra Brown appeals from a Fayette Circuit Court order denying his motion to amend his sentence. Upon careful review, we affirm. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND On September 24, 2024, in Fayette Circuit Court Case No. 24-CR 00768 (“the misdemeanor case”), Brown was indicted on three felony charges and three misdemeanor charges which included: two counts of strangulation in the first degree, Class C felonies;1 one count of unlawful imprisonment in the second degree, a Class A misdemeanor;2 one count of assault in the fourth degree, domestic violence, a Class A misdemeanor;3 and, one count of persistent felony offender, a Class B felony.4 On February 13, 2025, he entered a plea to one count of attempted strangulation, first degree5 and two counts of assault, fourth degree, domestic violence (minor injury). Notably, all three charges to which he pled were misdemeanors. He was sentenced to twelve months on each charge, to be served concurrently for a total sentence of twelve months. The sentence was ordered to run consecutively to any previous felony sentence Brown had to serve. Brown committed the offenses leading to the misdemeanor case while he was on pretrial release in another Fayette Circuit Court case, Case No. 23-CR- 0036 (“the felony case”). He received a sentence of five years in the felony case. Under the terms of the judgment in the misdemeanor case, his twelve-month sentence and his five-year sentence would be served consecutively. 1 Kentucky Revised Statute (“KRS”) 508.170. 2 KRS 509.030. 3 KRS 508.030. 4 KRS 532.080(3). 5 When the crime attempted is a Class C felony, the amendment to criminal attempt drops the charge to a Class A misdemeanor. KRS 506.010(4)(d). -2-  On April 22, 2025, Brown filed a motion for clarification of status in which he argued that ordering the sentences in the misdemeanor case and the felony case to run consecutively directly conflicted with the terms of KRS 532.110(1)(a), which requires definite and indeterminate sentences to run concurrently.6 The trial court treated the motion as one to alter, amend, or vacate the judgment pursuant to Kentucky Rule of Civil Procedure (CR) 60.02. It denied the motion on the grounds that KRS 533.060(3) specifies that when a person commits an offense while awaiting trial for another offense or enters a plea of guilty to the offense committed while awaiting trial, the sentence imposed shall not run concurrently for the offense for which the person is awaiting trial. Because Brown committed the misdemeanor case offenses while on pretrial release in the felony case, the twelve-month sentence had to be served consecutively to the five- year sentence. This appeal by Brown followed. STANDARD OF REVIEW We review the trial court’s denial of a motion pursuant to CR 60.02 under an abuse of discretion standard. White v. Commonwealth, 32 S.W.3d 83, 86 (Ky. App. 2000). An abuse of discretion occurs when a “trial judge’s decision was arbitrary, unreasonable, unfair, or unsupported by sound legal principles.” 6 KRS 532.090 states, “a sentence of imprisonment fo