Charles McLaurin, Jr. v. State of Mississippi

188 So. 3d 608, 2016 WL 1423499, 2016 Miss. App. LEXIS 218
CourtCourt of Appeals of Mississippi
DecidedApril 12, 2016
Docket2014-CP-01389-COA
StatusPublished

This text of 188 So. 3d 608 (Charles McLaurin, Jr. v. State of Mississippi) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Mississippi primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Charles McLaurin, Jr. v. State of Mississippi, 188 So. 3d 608, 2016 WL 1423499, 2016 Miss. App. LEXIS 218 (Mich. Ct. App. 2016).

Opinion

GRIFFIS, P.J.,

for the Court:

¶ 1. Charles McLaurin appeals the denial of his petition for post-conviction collateral relief (PCCR). He argues that: (1) his guilty plea was involuntary, (2) his motions prior to the plea hearing were never ruled upon, (3) he received an illegal sentence, (4) he should have received a free copy of the transcript of his plea hearing or, alternatively, an evidentiary hearing before the circuit court, (5) he received ineffective assistance of counsel, and (6) his due-process rights were violated. Finding no error, we affirm.

FACTS

¶ 2. On July 15, 2013, McLaurin pleaded guilty as a habitual offender to two felony shoplifting offenses that occurred in 2010. McLaurin was already serving a four-year sentence in Louisiana, and the judge agreed to allow McLauriris Mississippi sentence to run concurrently with the time he was serving in Louisianá. McLauriris sentencing order sentenced him as follows:

. i. [A] total of Four (4) Years to servé in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections pursuant to Section 99-19-81[ 1 ] ... said sentence being without hope of parole or probation in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. This sentence shall run concurrently with the defendant’s sentence in East Baton- Rouge Parish, Louisiana.... The defendant shall receive credit for time served.

¶3. McLaurin misunderstood this sentence and thought that (1) he would receive credit for the time he served in Louisiana, and (2) he would be returned to Louisiana to serve the remainder of his Mississippi sentence. He sought relief through the MDOC administrative process, then filed a motion with the circuit court for a review. 2 He subsequently filed multiple motions and pleadings with the circuit court in an effort to be transferred to Louisiana and to clarify his sentence. The circuit court issued orders in reference to each motion, denying relief and clarifying that the Mississippi and Louisiana sentences were to run concurrently during the time that the sentences overlapped from the date -that the Mississippi sentence began and also that the court could not order another state to house a Mississippi inmate. McLaurin then filed a PCCR petition, which was denied. It is from this judgment, that he now appeals.

ANALYSIS

¶ 4. “A circuit court’s denial of post-conviction relief will not be reversed absent a finding that the court’s decision was clearly erroneous.” Morris v. State, 66 So.3d 716, 719 (¶ 13) (Miss.Ct.App.2011). But “when issues of law are raised, the proper standard of review is de novo.” Id.

*611 I. Whether McLaurin’s guilty plea was voluntary.

¶ 5. McLaurin’s arguments regarding his guilty plea essentially center around multiple factual misrepresentations. McLaurin claims that the circuit court agreed to apply time he served on a previous Louisiana sentence to his time to be served in Mississippi and that the court also agreed to send him to Louisiana to serve the remainder of his Mississippi sentence. He contends that because of this “unkept bargain,”, his guilty plea was involuntary and his “plea' agreement” was breached.

¶ 6. In assessing whether a guilty plea is knowingly, voluntarily, and intelligently made, this Court considers “whether the defendant was advised of the nature of the charges against him, the rights which he would waive by pleading guilty, the maximum sentences that he could receive for the crimes charged, and whether he was satisfied with the advice and counsel of his attorney.” Richardson v. State, 856 So.2d 758, 761 (¶ 10) (Miss.Ct.App.2003). “It should, be noted that solemn declarations in open court [by a defendant] carry a strong presumption of verity.” Barnes v. State, 803 So.2d 1271, 1274 (¶ 10) (Miss.Ct.App.2002).

¶ 7. The defendant bears the burden of proving that a guilty plea was not made voluntarily. Id. The defendant’s plea will be upheld if this burden is not met. Id. “Further, the record must reflect that the trial .court thoroughly advised the defendant of all the consequences of a guilty plea, including the waiver of rights, satisfaction with [his] attorney[,] and advisement on the maximum and minimum penalties [he could] acquire for the crime committed.” Id.

¶ 8. A review of the plea-hearing transcript reveals that the circuit court never agreed to send, McLaurin to Louisiana, though the court did agree to allow, his Mississippi sentence to run concurrently with his Louisiana sentence. McLaurin claims that the circuit judge asked him, “If I send you back to.Louisiana will you still be able to get your medication?” He uses this to bolster his argument that the judge intended for him to be sent back to Louisiana. But. this statement and the discussion McLaurin claims took place is not present in the transcript before this Court.

¶,9. On the contrary, the transcript reveals a thorough discussion between McLaurin and the judge regarding his previous charges- in Louisiana and his guilt as to the charges in Mississippi. The court did--discuss whether McLaurin was on medication in order to determine that he was in control of his mental faculties. The judge discussed each charge along with the corresponding sentence and McLaurin’s status as a habitual offender. The plea colloquy reveals that McLaurin’s plea was voluntary. While he essentially argues that he pleaded guilty based on his understanding that he would' be sent to Louisiana and would receive time'served for a previous conviction in that state, these assertions are not supported by the record. It is true that “an attack on a facially correct plea may survive summary dismissal if supporting affidavits of other persons are attached,” but McLaurin has not provided any such evidence to support his claims. Rigdon v. State, 126 So.3d 931, 934-35 (¶ 10) (Miss.Ct.App.2013). This issue is without merit.

II. Whether McLaurin’s previous motions should have been ruled upon.

¶ 10. Relatedly, McLaurin argues that his requests for discovery, his motion to suppress, and his- demand for a speedy trial were never addressed by the trial court. It is “recognized that a valid *612 guilty plea operates as a waiver of all non-jurisdictional rights or defects which are incident to trial.” Anderson v. State, 577 So.2d 390, 391 (Miss.1991). Having found McLaurin’s guilty plea voluntary and valid, we find this issue is without merit.

III. Whether McLaurin received an illegal sentence.

¶ 11. McLaurin next claims that his sentence is illegal because he was not sent back to Louisiana and did not receive credit for twenty-two months that he served in Louisiana prior to his guilty plea in Mississippi. McLaurin’s argument fails, first, because the circuit court never ordered or even discussed the possibility that McLaurin would be sent back to Louisiana. Second, the sentence McLaurin received falls within the parameters of the felony shoplifting statute as it stood when he committed the crime and when he pleaded guilty. Miss.Code Ann.

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Related

Brister v. State
858 So. 2d 181 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2003)
Anderson v. State
577 So. 2d 390 (Mississippi Supreme Court, 1991)
Richardson v. State
856 So. 2d 758 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2003)
Barnes v. State
803 So. 2d 1271 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2002)
Morris v. State
66 So. 3d 716 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2011)
Charles McLaurin, Jr. v. State of Mississippi
181 So. 3d 1029 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2015)
Rigdon v. State
126 So. 3d 931 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2013)
Evans v. State
61 So. 3d 922 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2011)
Brooks v. State
89 So. 3d 626 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 2011)

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Bluebook (online)
188 So. 3d 608, 2016 WL 1423499, 2016 Miss. App. LEXIS 218, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/charles-mclaurin-jr-v-state-of-mississippi-missctapp-2016.