Porter v. Commonwealth

394 S.W.3d 382, 2011 WL 6542998, 2011 Ky. LEXIS 173
Kentucky Supreme Court·Decided December 22, 2011·No. No. 2010-SC-000189-MR·Published·Cited by 21 cases

Opinion

Opinion of the Court by

Justice ABRAMSON.

Larrell Porter pled guilty to three counts of trafficking in a controlled substance in the first degree, second or subsequent offense; being a persistent felony offender in the second degree; and two counts of possession of drug paraphernalia. This plea, which resulted in a twenty-year prison sentence, was pursuant to the second plea deal offered by the Commonwealth, the first of which Porter rejected when he refused to comply with a condition attached to the plea deal, namely that he waive his right to view video recordings of the drug buys. The Commonwealth imposed the condition on its initial plea offer to protect the identity of the confidential informant and several active investigations. The trial court denied Porter’s subsequent motion to withdraw his guilty plea, a ruling Porter challenges on appeal. Porter also argues the condition in the initial plea offer violated his right to discovery and his “substantial rights” and, further, that the Commonwealth acted improperly when it conditioned the first plea deal on waiver of his right to view the video. For the following reasons, we affirm.

RELEVANT FACTS

In November and December of 2006, police officers in Marion County, Kentucky used a confidential informant (informant) to make three controlled drug buys from Porter. Based on these transactions, Porter was indicted on three counts of trafficking in a controlled substance in the first degree, second or subsequent offense, a class B felony; two counts of possession of drug paraphernalia, a class A misdemeanor; and as a persistent felony offender in the second degree (PFO 2). The trial court’s Order of Arraignment and Discovery (discovery order) required the Commonwealth to comply with several rules of discovery, including Kentucky Rule of Criminal Procedure (RCr) 7.24(2), which permits the defendant to inspect and copy “tangible objects” in the Commonwealth’s possession or control. The discovery order also specified discovery must be completed seven days prior to the pretrial, which was set for October 20, 2008. On September 15, 2008, the Commonwealth filed a response to the discovery order, indicating the Commonwealth possessed an incriminating “Audio and Video CD of the drug transaction(s),” listing “Confidential informant, identity not to be revealed at this time” as a known eyewitness and averring the Commonwealth did not possess any exculpatory evidence.

At or around this time, the Commonwealth offered Porter a twelve-year sentence 1 for all of the crimes charged, pro[385] vided Porter agreed not to view the video of the drug buys.2 As part of this offer, defense counsel was permitted to view the video and disclose to Porter the entirety of its contents, except the identity of the informant. The Commonwealth explained the “counsel-only” condition was in place to protect the informant, to maintain the informant’s usefulness as a law enforcement asset, and to preserve ongoing investigations in which the informant was involved. This initial offer of twelve years was withdrawn when Porter insisted on personally viewing the video. The Commonwealth sent the video to him on May 18, 2009. The Commonwealth then extended an offer of twenty years for each trafficking charge and twelve months for each drug paraphernalia charge, all to run concurrently for a total prison sentence of twenty years for all charges. Porter eventually accepted this offer and pled guilty on October 12, 2009.

On January 4, 2010, Porter moved to withdraw his guilty plea, claiming the condition attached to the first plea offer rendered his later plea unknowing and involuntary. Porter further alleged violation of both his right to discovery and his “substantial rights,” as well as prosecutorial misconduct. After a hearing on the matter, the trial court denied Porter’s motion, finding it was within the Commonwealth’s discretion to offer a plea deal conditioned on the defendant waiving his right to view a video, in order to protect the identity of a confidential informant. Porter was sentenced to twenty years in prison in accord with his plea agreement and now appeals as a matter of right. Ky. Const. § 110(2)(b).

On appeal, Porter argues: (1) the condition imposed by the Commonwealth in its first plea offer rendered his later plea unknowing and involuntary and, thus, the trial court erred when it denied his motion to withdraw his plea; (2) the Commonwealth violated discovery rules when it limited his right to view the video as part of the initial plea deal; (3) the condition violated his “substantial rights”; and (4) the prosecutor’s actions were improper. Finding no error, we affirm.

ANALYSIS

1. The Trial Court Properly Denied Porter’s Motion to Withdraw His Voluntary and Knowing Guilty Plea.

A trial court may accept a guilty plea upon a determination, made on, the record, that the plea is voluntarily and intelligently made, “with sufficient awareness of the relevant circumstances and likely consequences.” United States v. Ruiz, 536 U.S. 622, 623, 122 S.Ct. 2450, 153 L.Ed.2d 586 (2002) (quoting Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 83 S.Ct. 1194, 10 L.Ed.2d 215 (1963)); Edmonds v. Commonwealth, 189 S.W.3d 558 (Ky.2006); RCr 8.08. In determining whether a guilty plea is voluntary, intelligent and sufficiently aware (hereinafter referred to as “voluntary”), the trial court considers the totality of the circumstances surrounding the guilty plea, an inherently fact-specific inquiry. Bronk v. Commonwealth, 58 S.W.3d 482 (Ky.2001). Similarly, when a defendant moves to withdraw his guilty plea, the court must hold a hearing to determine whether the plea was entered voluntarily. Rodriguez v. Commonwealth, 87 S.W.3d 8 (Ky.2002). If the trial court finds the plea was involuntary, it must [386] grant the motion to withdraw. Id. If, however, the trial court determines the plea was voluntary, it may deny the motion to withdraw and enforce the plea. Id. The trial court is in the best position to determine if there was any “reluctance, misunderstanding, involuntariness, or incompetence to plead guilty,” Bronk, 58 S.W.3d at 487, and “solemn declarations in open court carry a strong presumption of verity,” Blackledge v. Allison, 431 U.S. 63, 74, 97 S.Ct. 1621, 52 L.Ed.2d 136 (1977). We review a trial court’s finding regarding voluntariness for clear error, ie., whether the determination was supported by substantial evidence, and we review a trial court’s ruling on a motion to withdraw for abuse of discretion, ie., whether it was arbitrary, unreasonable, unfair, or unsupported by sound legal principles. Edmonds, 189 S.W.3d at 570.

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Porter v. Commonwealth, 394 S.W.3d 382, 2011 WL 6542998, 2011 Ky. LEXIS 173 (Ky. 2011).

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