Bearden v. State

1964 OK CR 42, 392 P.2d 55, 1964 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 175
CourtCourt of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma
DecidedApril 1, 1964
DocketA-13394
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 1964 OK CR 42 (Bearden v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Bearden v. State, 1964 OK CR 42, 392 P.2d 55, 1964 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 175 (Okla. Ct. App. 1964).

Opinion

JOHNSON, Presiding Judge.

The plaintiff in error, E. K. Bearden, hereinafter referred to as defendant, was *56 charged by information in the district court of Johnston County, Oklahoma with burglary in the second degree, after former conviction of felony, in that on or about October 18, 1962 in the nighttime he entered a certain store building in Tisho-mingo and took therefrom certain bottles of liquor, particularly listed on a separate sheet, and of the value of $1800, the information listing four previous felony convictions of this defendant.

Defendant appeared in the district court in person and by his attorney and entered a plea of not guilty. His case was asr signed for trial for March 12, 1963. Thereafter at the request of the defendant, the trial was continued until March 19, 1963. Before that date, and on March IS the defendant, accompanied by his counsel, appeared in court, asked leave to withdraw his plea of not guilty and enter a plea of guilty. This was permitted, and he was sentenced to a term of five years in the State Penitentiary, from which judgment and sentence this appeal has been perfected.

The appeal was lodged in this Court on June 12, 1963, and brief was due to be filed by the defendant on or before July 12, 1963. Several extensions were granted, and the case was assigned for oral argument for September 25, 1963. At the request of the defendant, the case was stricken, and reassigned for October 2, 1963. Although no brief had been filed on that date, counsel was permitted to orally argue the case, and was granted thirty days to file a brief. Thereafter the State filed its brief on October 22, 1963, and counsel for defendant on November 8, 1963 filed a brief on behalf of the defendant.

Counsel for defendant at the outset states: “Much of what actually happened in this case does not appear of record, but enough appears in the casemade to show that the defendant’s rights were literally trampled on by those in authority.”

It has long been the rule in this jurisdiction that this Court will consider only such matters as appear in the record of the trial below and are reflected in the casemade. See Territory v. Cooper, 11 Okl. 699, 69 P. 813; Jackson v. State, 86 Okl.Cr. 420, 193 P.2d 895; Estes v. State, 95 Okl.Cr. 209, 242 P.2d 459.

It is counsel’s contention that he had, previous to March 15, 1963 worked out an arrangement with former County Attorney J. E. Bullard, the exact nature of which arrangement is never clearly reflected in the record or in counsel’s oral argument, whereby the County Attorney was to strike from the information the charge of former convictions, and the defendant would then enter a plea of guilty and would be sentenced to five years in the penitentiary, which sentence was in some manner not to be carried out. Counsel contends that Mr. Bullard had informed him that such arrangement had been presented to the judge of the district court of Johnston County, and that the arrangement was satisfactory with the judge. As above stated, it is fundamental that this Court must take the record as it has been made, and cannot go behind the record and supply what does not appear therein.

According to the record before us, the defendant, with his attorney and the county attorney appeared before the district court at a time when a civil case was ready for trial, and the court interrupted the trial with the remark: “Before you call your first witness in this civil case, I see Mr. Champion [attorney for defendant] is here. Can we help you, Mr. Champion?” Mr. Champion answered, “Yes, your Honor, if you will.”

Mr. Champion then informed the court that Mr. Bearden was present in court, and wanted to change his plea and “come before the Court at this time.” The court excused the jury for fifteen minutes. Mr. Champion then stated to the court that he “would like to outline procedure on these two cases, and arrangements on Mr. Bearden to see if this is satisfactory.”

*57 After discussion at the bench, out of the hearing of the reporter, the following appears in the record:

“The Court: Do you wish to have the information read at this time ?
“Mr. Champion: No, your Honor, since it shows that the charge has been reduced by deleting the matters about subsequent offense.
“Mr. Bullard: Yes, the record should show that the charge has been reduced to just burglary in the second degree. The part charging 'after former conviction’ is just for the jury, ordinarily, anyway, and we have agreed that in this numbered case that the reduction be made since he is entering his plea of guilty.
“Mr. Champion: Yes. He now waives time, reading of the information, trial by jury, and consents to trial by the court and enters his plea of guilty to the present charge.
“The Court: Do you want to put on anything here to the Court or talk about anything you have not already talked about ?
“Mr. Champion: No, your Honor.
“Mr. Bullard: I believe not at this time.
“The Court: What' is the recommendation of the State?
“Mr. Bullard: In view of his plea of guilty here, we think the charge of withholding stolen property should be dismissed as against this defendant, and that he should have five years on this offense.
“The Court: The penalty here runs from two to seven years?
“Mr. Bullard: That’s true, your Hon- or.
“The Court: And on the subsequent offense idea, the penalty would have been not less than ten years?
“Mr. Bullard: Yes, conviction on that would have resulted in ten years to life. However, I am advised by his attorney that he has pleaded guilty to some similar charge or charges in Tillman County and is now under sentence of five years in the penitentiary from there, with possibly other charges either running concurrently, or they have said suspended; and on his plea of guilty here, where the State is not put to the trouble and expense of trial, I believe that five years is ample for this offense.”

Thereupon the defendant was called to the bench, and the court sentenced him to a term of five years in the State Penitentiary, and Mr. Champion immediately said:

“Isn’t this to conform to the sentence in Tillman County, your Honor?
“The Court: I am only pronouncing sentence here in Johnston County, and I think this five years is fair.
“Mr. Champion: Well, in that event, we ask permission to withdraw his plea of guilty and ask for trial. We thought this matter could be handled so that he could he doing his time for Tillman County, with the motion for new trial left pending here, and then when he had done his time for Tillman County this matter could he dismissed. [Emphasis now supplied.]
‘The Court: I had no such understanding with anybody, and I will have to remand him to the custody of the sheriff at this time.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Walker v. State
1989 OK CR 65 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1989)
Handley v. Page
279 F. Supp. 878 (W.D. Oklahoma, 1968)
Fulce v. Page
1967 OK CR 161 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1967)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
1964 OK CR 42, 392 P.2d 55, 1964 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 175, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/bearden-v-state-oklacrimapp-1964.