State v. Abdullahi

2000 ND 39, 607 N.W.2d 561, 2000 N.D. LEXIS 56, 2000 WL 291152
CourtNorth Dakota Supreme Court
DecidedMarch 21, 2000
Docket990243
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 2000 ND 39 (State v. Abdullahi) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering North Dakota Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Abdullahi, 2000 ND 39, 607 N.W.2d 561, 2000 N.D. LEXIS 56, 2000 WL 291152 (N.D. 2000).

Opinion

KAPSNER, Justice.

[¶ 1] Abbas Shariff Abdullahi appealed from an order denying his motion to withdraw his guilty plea. We hold deportation and mandatory, indefinite detention under federal immigration laws are collateral consequences of a guilty plea to a state criminal charge, and a trial court need not advise a defendant about those consequences before accepting a guilty plea under N.D.R.Crim.P. 11. We affirm.

I

[¶ 2] In July 1998, Abdullahi, a Somalian native and citizen who had been admitted into the United States in 1996, was charged with gross sexual imposition under N.D.C.C. § 12.1-20-03(l)(d) for allegedly engaging in a sexual act with a victim less than fifteen years old. Abdullahi appeared with an interpreter at his initial appearance on July 14, 1998, and the court informed him:

Okay. First of all you all have the right to be present at all stages of the proceedings. You have the right to assistance of legal counsel at all stages of the proceedings. You have the right to remain silent except to enter a plea of guilty or not guilty. You have the right to a jury trial upon the entry of a not guilty plea. And you may, if the State’s Attorney agrees and the Court agrees, waive your right to a jury trial and have your case tried before the Judge without a jury. If you are tried before a jury, a unanimous verdict of guilty is required before you can be convicted. If you waive your right to a jury trial, your case will be tried before the Judge without a jury.
You have the right to confront the witnesses the State will call against you to testify. And you have the right to the use of subpoena powers of the State of North Dakota to compel witnesses to testify in your own defense. You have a right to a reasonable delay with in which to prepare a defense. And you have the right to have a trial without ever taking the witness stand and no one is to comment upon that to the jury. That is, you do not have to testify at your own trial.
You are presumed innocent unless and until the State can prove you guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. You have the right to a speedy trial. And you have the right to a public trial. And you have the right to be admitted to reasonable bail. You have the right to a reasonable delay with in which time you can prepare your own defense, if I didn’t tell you that.
If an attorney is appointed to represent you at public expense, you may have to pay attorney’s fees at a later time in an amount to be determined by the Judge.
If you are not a citizen of the United States and you are convicted of a crime either by pleading guilty or by a trial, you may be deported to another country.
*563 If you are presently on probation in this jurisdiction or any other jurisdiction in the United States and you are convicted of a crime, your probation may be revoked and you may be re-sentenced to a term of imprisonment.
If you are convicted of a sex crime, you will have to register your whereabouts in the United States for a minimum of ten years. And depending on the nature of the sex crime, possibly for the rest of your life.
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So what he’s facing is if he’s found guilty by pleading guilty or by a trial, he’s facing up to twenty years in prison and possibly a fine of Twenty Thousand Dollars and registering his whereabouts wherever he Uves in the United States for years to come. And possible deportation to another country. What they’re alleging is that he engaged in a sexual act with a 13 year old girl and that’s underage.

[¶ 3] On August 6, 1998, Abdullahi appeared with an interpreter and court-appointed counsel at a scheduled preliminary hearing. Abdullahi waived his right to the preliminary hearing and pled not guilty to the charge. After informing Abdullahi of the maximum penalties for conviction and the requirement for registration as a sex offender under North Dakota law, the court again informed him “if he’s convicted, he may be deported to another country. I think I told him that last time. If he’s not a United States citizen.”

[¶ 4] On September 28, 1998, Abdullahi, with an interpreter and court-appointed counsel, attempted to plead guilty to the charge. The court refused to accept Ab-dullahi’s guilty plea, however, because he claimed he did not have sexual intercourse with the victim.

[¶ 5] On November 9, 1998, Abdullahi appeared with an interpreter and court-appointed counsel and withdrew his not guilty plea. The following colloquy occurred:

THE COURT: Okay. Then I’m going to ask you some questions and have you answer your interpreter out loud. Do you understand, sir, you have the right to plead guilty or not guilty?
INTERPRETER: Yes, Your Honor.
THE COURT: Okay and that is to the charge of Gross Sexual Imposition? You understand that?
INTERPRETER: Yes, Your Honor.
THE COURT: Did you hear and understand the Constitutional Rights the Court gave you on an earlier date?
INTERPRETER: Yes, Your Honor.
THE COURT: Do you understand the nature of this charge, Count One, Gross Sexual Imposition?
INTERPRETER: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: And do you understand, sir, that if you plead guilty the maximum penalty you can face is twenty years in prison and/or a Twenty Thousand Dollar fine.
INTERPRETER: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: And do you understand that you will have to register as a sex offender?
INTERPRETER: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: Do you understand that if you plead guilty, you will be waiving your rights to any trial proceedings of any kind and your right to cross examine those witnesses who would have taken the stand and testified against you if you had gone to trial?
INTERPRETER: Yes.
THE COURT: Okay. Has anyone threatened you in any way in an attempt to get you to enter a guilty plea here today?
INTERPRETER: No.
THE COURT: Has anyone promised you anything in an attempt to get you to enter a guilty plea here today?
INTERPRETER: No.
THE COURT: Has anyone threatened to use force against you in an *564 attempt to get you to enter a guilty plea here today?
INTERPRETER: No.
THE COURT: Are you satisfied with your counsel’s representation of you this far in the case?
INTERPRETER: Yes.
THE COURT: And are you under the influence of any drugs including alcohol at this time?
INTERPRETER: No.

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Bluebook (online)
2000 ND 39, 607 N.W.2d 561, 2000 N.D. LEXIS 56, 2000 WL 291152, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-abdullahi-nd-2000.