Holt v. State

811 S.W.2d 827, 1991 Mo. App. LEXIS 1005, 1991 WL 113348
CourtMissouri Court of Appeals
DecidedJune 28, 1991
Docket16827
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 811 S.W.2d 827 (Holt v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Missouri Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Holt v. State, 811 S.W.2d 827, 1991 Mo. App. LEXIS 1005, 1991 WL 113348 (Mo. Ct. App. 1991).

Opinion

FLANIGAN, Chief Judge.

Movant Richard Lee Holt appeals from the trial court’s denial, after evidentiary hearing, of his two Rule 24.035 1 motions, seeking to vacate a judgment and sentence entered on a plea of guilty to a charge of involuntary manslaughter.

Movant makes no complaint concerning the trial court’s disposition of his original pro se motion. His complaint concerns the trial court’s disposition of his amended motion, which was prepared by counsel and was untimely. On October 24, 1990, this court issued its opinion denying movant’s appeal because the amended motion was untimely. Because of subsequent events, this court’s original opinion is now withdrawn.

The Supreme Court of Missouri accepted transfer of movant’s appeal, and on April 10, 1991, it entered an order retransferring the cause to this court “for re-examination in light of” Luleff v. State, 807 S.W.2d 495 (Mo. banc 1991), and Sanders v. State, 807 S.W.2d 493 (Mo. banc 1991). In Luleff the court held that “the appropriate forum for addressing claims regarding a complete absence of performance by postconviction counsel on a motion for postconviction relief, is in the circuit court where the motion is being prosecuted by movant.” 807 S.W.2d at 497. In Sanders, counsel determined that there was a sound basis for amending the pro se motion but failed to file a timely amended motion. The failure was a form of “abandonment” by postcon-viction counsel.

*828 After the instant action had been re-transferred here, this court ordered mov-ant’s counsel to file comprehensive written suggestions outlining his views and recommendations and requests for relief in light of Luleff and Sanders. The state was afforded the opportunity to respond.

Movant’s response to this court’s order was to request remand to the trial court “for a hearing to determine whether he was abandoned by postconviction counsel when said counsel failed to timely amend his motion.” The state responded that movant’s amended motion, although untimely, was the subject of an evidentiary hearing and that the trial court had entered its findings and conclusions. The state argues that it would be pointless to remand this cause for a hearing regarding abandonment.

This court agrees with the state. The present record is sufficient for review of the correctness of the trial court’s order denying movant relief on the amended motion. In the interest of expedition and judicial economy, this court reviews on the merits the point sought to be raised by movant in his amended motion and his original brief.

Movant entered a plea of guilty to a charge of involuntary manslaughter and he was sentenced to imprisonment for five years. In his amended Rule 24.035 motion, movant alleged that he was deprived of his right to effective assistance of counsel and that such deprivation tainted the voluntariness of his plea.

The amended motion alleged: movant’s counsel at the guilty plea hearing was attorney Carter, who was a partner of attorney Pearson; Pearson had entered into plea negotiations with the prosecutor before the date of the guilty plea hearing; Carter was present at the guilty plea hearing due to Pearson’s inability to attend; the plea negotiations between Pearson and the prosecutor “had culminated in agreement that [movant] would plead guilty and after a presentence investigation would receive no more than one year of confinement”; Carter, being unfamiliar with the terms of the plea agreement, advised mov-ant and the court “that the plea agreement was for no less than one year confinement”; movant’s guilty plea was not voluntary “in that movant was not fully advised of the meaning and effect of his guilty plea and the possible punishment”; movant, as well as his counsel Pearson, had the understanding that the maximum confinement movant would receive would be one year.

On this appeal, movant contends that he was entitled to relief on his amended motion, and the trial court erred in ruling otherwise, because attorney Carter was ineffective in that Carter allowed movant to plead guilty “when the recommended sentence allowed for imposition of a sentence in excess of the terms of the plea agreement negotiated by attorney Pearson.”

Appellate review of the trial court’s ruling on the amended motion is limited to a determination of whether the findings and conclusions of the trial court are clearly erroneous. Rule 24.035®. The findings and conclusions of the trial court are deemed clearly erroneous only if, after review of the entire record, the appellate court is left with the definite and firm impression that a mistake has been made. Day v. State, 770 S.W.2d 692, 695-96 (Mo. banc 1989). “In order for a movant in a post-conviction motion, who pleaded guilty in the underlying criminal case, to establish ineffective assistance of counsel, he must demonstrate that: (1) counsel’s performance was unreasonable under prevailing professional norms, and (2) but for his counsel’s deficient performance, movant would not have pleaded guilty and would have insisted on going to trial.” Collins v. State, 792 S.W.2d 887, 888 (Mo.App.1990).

When a movant claims his plea was involuntary because he was misled by counsel, the test is whether movant’s belief was reasonable. Norris v. State, 778 S.W.2d 823, 824[1] (Mo.App.1989). “While an individual may proclaim he had a certain belief and may subjectively believe it, if it was unreasonable for him to entertain such a belief at the time of the plea proceeding, relief should not be granted.... Where there is no reasonable basis for the belief in light of the guilty plea record, movant is *829 not entitled to relief. McMahon v. State, 569 S.W.2d 753, 758 (Mo. banc 1978).

Movant’s contention is based on the assumption that there was a plea agreement between the prosecuting attorney, Martin Mazzei, and movant’s attorney Pearson that movant “would receive no more than one year of confinement.” The trial court found that there was no such plea agreement. This court agrees.

At the hearing on the Rule 24.035 motion, movant adduced the testimony of attorney Pearson, attorney Carter, and mov-ant himself. In its order denying movant’s Rule 24.035 motion, the trial court made meticulous findings of fact concerning the events at the guilty plea hearing of January 9, 1989, and the sentencing hearing of June 6, 1989. In its findings and conclusions, the trial court pointed out, properly, that the credibility of the witnesses at the motion hearing is a matter for the court and that the court may reject any and all of their testimony, even if no contrary evidence was offered by the state. The court stated: “Movant’s testimony, and the testimony of Mr. Carter and Mr.

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Bluebook (online)
811 S.W.2d 827, 1991 Mo. App. LEXIS 1005, 1991 WL 113348, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/holt-v-state-moctapp-1991.