People v. Jaworski

181 N.W.2d 811, 25 Mich. App. 540
CourtMichigan Court of Appeals
DecidedOctober 15, 1970
DocketDocket 8,729
StatusPublished
Cited by43 cases

This text of 181 N.W.2d 811 (People v. Jaworski) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Michigan Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Jaworski, 181 N.W.2d 811, 25 Mich. App. 540 (Mich. Ct. App. 1970).

Opinions

Danhof, J.

The defendant was charged with breaking and entering contrary to MCLA § 750.110 (Stat Ann 1970 Cum Supp § 28.305). At his arraignment on August 14, 1969 the defendant, while represented by counsel, stood mute, and the court then entered a plea of not guilty, as required by statute, MCLA § 767.37 (Stat Ann 1954 Rev § 28.977).

On September 8, 1969 the people moved to add a second count of attempted breaking and entering, MCLA § 750.92 (Stat Ann 1962 Rev § 28.287). That motion was allowed and the defendant then pled guilty to the added count. On September 29, 1969 [543]*543the defendant was sentenced to a term of four to five years in prison.

The only question on appeal is whether the trial court complied with the constitutional requirements in accepting a plea as stated in the case of Boykin v. Alabama (1969), 395 US 238 (89 S Ct 1709, 23 L Ed 2d 274).

The defendant argues that the Boykin decision requires on the record statements waiving (1) the privilege against compulsory self-incrimination, (2) the right to trial by jury, and (3) the right to confront one’s accusers. The record contains statements waiving the last two constitutional rights, but there is no statement specifically waiving the privilege against compulsory self-incrimination.

It is clear from the testimony at the time the guilty plea was taken,1 and from the written plea of guilty [544]*544signed both by defendant and his attorney,2 that [545]*545there was full compliance by the trial judge with the statutory and court rule requirements relative [546]*546to accepting pleas of guilty, CL 1948, § 768.35 (Stat Ann 1954 Rev § 28.1058)3 123 4and GCR 1963, 785.3.4 Recent decisions of the Michigan Supreme Court in People v. Hobdy (1968), 380 Mich 686, People v. Dunn (1968), 380 Mich 693, People v. Stearns (1968), 380 Mich 704, and People v. Winegar (1968), 380 Mich 719, settle the validity of the trial judge’s acceptance of the defendant’s plea unless, as argued, [547]*547the later decision in Boykin v. Alabama, supra, requires additional interrogation by the trial judge.

This Court has previously held that Boykin does not apply retroactively. People v. Taylor (1970), 23 Mich App 595; People v. Butler (1970), 23 Mich App 643. We are now presented with a guilty plea entered approximately three months after Boykin was decided. We must determine what application, if any, Boykin has to Michigan criminal cases.

In Boykin a local grand jury returned five indictments against Boykin, a Negro, for common-law robbery — an offense punishable in Alabama by death. The court appointed counsel for the indigent defendant, and at the arraignment three days later, the defendant pleaded guilty to all five indictments. So far as the record showed, the judge had not asked any questions of Boykin concerning his plea and the defendant did not address the court. Justice Douglas, writing for the majority said, p 242:

“It was error, plain on the face of the record, for the trial judge to accept petitioner’s guilty plea without an affirmative showing that it was intelligent and voluntary.” (Emphasis added.)

After citing Carnley v. Cochran (1962), 369 US 506 (82 S Ct 884, 8 L Ed 2d 70), for the holding that “ ‘Presuming waiver from a silent record is impermissible,’ ” the Court stated, p 242:

“We think that the same standard must be applied to determining whether a guilty plea is voluntarily made.” (Emphasis added.)

The Boykin opinion lists three Federal constitutional rights involved in a waiver that takes place when a plea of guilty is entered in a state criminal trial. They are the privilege against compulsory self-incrimination, the right to trial by jury, and the [548]*548right to confront one’s accusers. The court then said, p 243:

“We cannot presume a waiver of these three important federal rights from a silent record.” (Emphasis added.)

The concluding sentence of Justice Douglas’ opinion reads, p 244:

“The three dissenting justices in the Alabama Supreme Court stated the law accurately when they concluded that there was reversible error ‘because the record does not disclose that the defendant voluntarily and understandingly entered his pleas of guilty.’ ” (Emphasis added.)

Boykin is devoid of any specific language stating that in order to have a valid waiver of the three Federal constitutional rights involved when a plea of guilty is entered the three rights must be specifically enumerated and specifically waived. If the United States Supreme Court had intended such a holding, it would have been easy for the court to have so stated. Rather, the court emphasized the silent record5 and thus the lack of any affirmative showing that the defendant voluntarily and understandingly entered his guilty plea.

We think the purpose of the enumeration in Boy-kin of the three Federal constitutional rights which are waived by the valid entry of a guilty plea was to explain why it is necessary to have a record which affirmatively shows that the defendant did voluntarily and understandingly enter his guilty plea. These three rights are so important that the United [549]*549States Supreme Court would not presume from a silent record that ignorance, incomprehension, coercion, terror, inducements, subtle or blatant threats were not involved. Boykin v. Alabama, supra, pp 242, 243.

This construction of the Boykin decision is supported by the opinion of Michigan Chief Justice T. E. Brennan in People v. Taylor (1970), 383 Mich 338. He wrote pp 355, 356:

“The Court further enumerates the privilege against compulsory self-incrimination, the right to trial by jury, and the right to confront one’s accusers.

“The Court did not say, as some have suggested, that explicit and expressed waivers must be taken upon each of these constitutional rights before the plea can be accepted.

“The holding is more properly, that these rights are waived by the act of entering the guilty plea, and it is for this reason that a record must be made upon the question of voluntariness.”

The Chief Justice continued his discussion of Boy-kin pp 356, 357:

“This understanding of the case is highlighted by the dissent. The Harlan opinion criticizes the majority on the ground that its holding ‘* * * fastens upon the states, as a matter of Federal constitutional law, the rigid prophylactic requirements of Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure.’

“The dissent, in effect, accuses the majority of applying McCarthy v. United States (1969), 394 US 459 (89 S Ct 1166, 22 L Ed 2d 418) to the states retroactively, while applying it to the Federal courts prospectively only, via Halliday v.

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Bluebook (online)
181 N.W.2d 811, 25 Mich. App. 540, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-jaworski-michctapp-1970.