State v. Alsup

722 P.2d 1100, 239 Kan. 673, 1986 Kan. LEXIS 380
CourtSupreme Court of Kansas
DecidedJuly 18, 1986
Docket58,921
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 722 P.2d 1100 (State v. Alsup) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Kansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Alsup, 722 P.2d 1100, 239 Kan. 673, 1986 Kan. LEXIS 380 (kan 1986).

Opinions

The opinion of the court was delivered by

Herd, J.:

This is a direct appeal from a criminal proceeding in which the appellant, John Alsup, pled no contest to one count of aggravated robbery (K.S.A. 21-3427) and one count of kidnapping (K.S.A. 21-3420).

The charges against Alsup arose from the following incident. In the late afternoon of November 13, 1982, appellant entered the Caney Drugstore in Caney, Kansas. He grabbed Diana Pinegar, a 14-year-old drugstore employee, and pointed a sawed-off shotgun at her abdomen. He then ordered Don Wagner, the store owner, to the back of the store and forced Harold Winkler, the pharmacist, to lie on the floor. Alsup demanded that Wagner give him some drugs — demerol, preludin, and dilaudid — and threatened to kill Diana if Wagner didn’t comply. After obtaining the drugs, Alsup took Diana out of the store and told Wagner, “[I]f the police show up, she’s dead.”

Charges were filed against Alsup on December 2, 1982, but the preliminary hearing did not take place until November 21, [674]*6741984. The delay resulted from Alsup being incarcerated in Oklahoma for another offense. He was returned to Kansas after he filed a demand for trial pursuant to the Interstate Agreement on Detainers. A jury trial was set for April 16, 1985.

One day before the scheduled trial date, appellant’s attorney, Robert Claus, moved to withdraw as counsel because he and Alsup disagreed on the manner in which to conduct Alsup’s defense. The trial court granted the motion and appointed Tom Crossan to represent the appellant. However, at the hearing on Claus’ motion to withdraw, Alsup objected to Claus’ withdrawal and informed the trial court he wanted to plead to the offenses for which he was charged. The trial court urged him to wait and speak to Crossan, cautioned him of the consequences and inquired as to his understanding of the plea. Upon obtaining satisfactory answers from Alsup, the court finally accepted his nolo contendere plea, all as more fully set out later in this opinion.

The appellant was sentenced to a term of not less than five years nor more than life for the offense of aggravated robbery and to a term of not less than ten years nor more than life for the offense of kidnapping, with the sentences to run consecutively to each other and consecutively with sentences for any crimes for which appellant was previously sentenced or on parole.

K.S.A. 22-3602(a) precludes a direct appeal from a “judgment of conviction” where the defendant pleads guilty or nolo contendere. However, in this case the court permitted extensive additional discovery and held additional hearings after the plea and before pronouncing sentence some six months later. In light of the foregoing circumstances we consider this appeal as if it were a proceeding under K.S.A. 60-1507 and not a direct appeal. We thus have jurisdiction of the appeal.

Let us turn to the merits of the case. Appellant first alleges the trial court erred in allowing his trial counsel, Robert Claus, to withdraw just one day before the appellant’s scheduled trial date.

In support of his contention, appellant cites Supreme Court Rule 117 (235 Kan. civ), which provides:

“WITHDRAWAL OF ATTORNEY. An attorney who has appeared of record in any proceeding may withdraw; but he shall be relieved of his duties to the court, his client, and opposing counsel only when he has served a motion for withdrawal on the client and on opposing counsel, filed a copy of the motion and [675]*675proof of the service thereof with the clerk, and the judge has entered an order approving the withdrawal. No such order shall be required if another attorney authorized to practice law in this state is appearing of record to represent the client.”

Claus made an oral motion to withdraw in the presence of the appellant in a proceeding which was on the record. Additionally, the court allowed Alsup to comment regarding his (Alsup’s) reasons for not wanting Claus to withdraw. Claus did serve a formal motion to withdraw on Alsup and opposing counsel and filed the motion with the court on the same day as the proceeding. Under these circumstances, it appears Rule 117 has been substantially complied with.

Alsup’s primary argument on appeal is that the trial court erred in accepting his nolo contendere plea. Alsup argues his plea was not voluntary because it was induced by “long delays” perpetrated by the court and counsel for both sides.

The acceptance of a plea of guilty or nolo contendere is governed by K.S.A. 1985 Supp. 22-3210, which provides as follows:

“(a) Before or during trial a plea of guilty or nolo contendere may be accepted when:
“(1) The defendant or counsel for the defendant enters such plea in open court; and
“(2) in felony cases the court has informed the defendant of the consequences of the plea and of the maximum penalty provided by law which may be imposed upon acceptance of such plea; and
“(3) in felony cases the court has addressed the defendant personally and determined that the plea is made voluntarily with understanding of the nature of the charge and the consequences of the plea; and
“(4) the court is satisfied that there is a factual basis for the plea.
“(b) In felony cases the defendant must appear and plead personally and a verbatim record of all proceedings at the plea and entry of judgment thereon shall be made.
“(c) In traffic infraction and misdemeanor cases the court may allow the defendant to appear and plead by counsel.
“(d) A plea of guilty or nolo contendere for good cause shown and within the discretion of the court, may be withdrawn at any time before sentence' is adjudged. To correct manifest injustice the court after sentence may set aside the judgment of conviction and permit the defendant to withdraw the plea.”

We discussed the necessity for this statutory procedure in Trotter v. State, 218 Kan. 266, 268-69, 543 P.2d 1023 (1975):

“The procedure set out in the statute is in compliance with and embodies the requirements of due process as interpreted by the United States Supreme Court [676]*676in Boykin v. Alabama, 395 U.S. 238, 23 L.Ed.2d 274, 89 S. Ct. 1709. [Citation omitted.] It has long been recognized that to satisfy the requirements of due process, a plea of guilty must be both knowing and voluntary. [Citations omitted.] The new due process requirement added by Boykin was ‘that the record must affirmatively disclose’ a knowing and voluntary plea. Brady v. United States,

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
722 P.2d 1100, 239 Kan. 673, 1986 Kan. LEXIS 380, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-alsup-kan-1986.