State v. Hanslovan

211 P.3d 775, 147 Idaho 530, 2008 Ida. App. LEXIS 73
CourtIdaho Court of Appeals
DecidedJune 25, 2008
Docket33127
StatusPublished
Cited by49 cases

This text of 211 P.3d 775 (State v. Hanslovan) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Idaho Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Hanslovan, 211 P.3d 775, 147 Idaho 530, 2008 Ida. App. LEXIS 73 (Idaho Ct. App. 2008).

Opinions

SCHWARTZMAN, Judge Pro Tem.

Larry Dwight Hanslovan appeals from the district court’s denial of his motion to withdraw his guilty pleas and the denial of his motion for reduction of sentence. We affirm.

I.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

In early March of 2005, Larry Dwight Hanslovan and his girlfriend, Barbara Lynn Dehl, sold nearly an ounce of methamphetamine to an undercover police officer and a confidential informant. Two weeks later, in an unrelated incident, Hanslovan and Ronald John Huntsman, Sr., forced two people into a car at gunpoint. The two victims were taken to Dehl’s home, bound with packing tape, and beaten in an attempt to obtain confessions regarding items missing from Dehl’s residence. John Albert Schmeichel was eventually implicated in the theft. Hanslovan and Huntsman took one of the victims with them to find Schmeichel. Huntsman then shot and killed Schmeichel on the return trip while Hanslovan drove the car. The two remaining victims were eventually released. As a result of these incidents, Hanslovan and Dehl were indicted by a grand jury for several felonies: trafficking in methamphetamine, I.C. § 37-2732B(a)(4), and two counts of kidnapping, I.C. § 18-4501. Hanslovan was also indicted for two counts of use of a firearm or deadly weapon, I.C. § 19-2520. Huntsman alone was indicted for the murder of Schmeichel.

Prior to trial on all counts, the trafficking charge was severed from the remaining charges and eventually amended to delivery of a controlled substance, I.C. § 37-2732(a). Dehl entered a guilty plea to the amended delivery charge on the Friday before trial. Hanslovan then moved for a continuance of his trial and for replacement of counsel, expressing extreme displeasure with his attorney’s performance up to that point. The court denied both motions so as not to delay the joint trial of all three defendants on the kidnapping and murder charges, which was scheduled to begin in nineteen days. Hanslovan was given the option of proceeding to trial on the delivery charge with his current attorney, or proceeding pro se. The following Monday morning, prior to jury selection, Hanslovan informed the court through his attorney that he wished to plead guilty.

During the plea colloquy, Hanslovan told the court he was pleading guilty to the delivery charge because he had no defense due to his attorney’s lack of preparation and that “if I took it to trial that the likelihood that I would get life is very much greater than if I just pled guilty.” The court refused to accept the plea at that point because it would be involuntary. Hanslovan’s attorney explained to the court that the perceived inadequacies were really due to a difference of [533]*533opinion between himself and Hanslovan of how to proceed. The court allowed Hanslovan to consult with his attorney during a recess, after which Hanslovan reaffirmed his desire to plead guilty to the delivery charge. Hanslovan convinced the district court that he was pleading guilty because he was guilty, and admitted facts sufficient to support his guilty plea to the delivery charge.

Six months later, Hanslovan and Dehl appeared before the district court to enter guilty pleas to one count each of second degree kidnapping. Pursuant to an agreement with the state, all of the remaining counts were dismissed. Hanslovan and Dehl both agreed to testify truthfully against Huntsman if called at his trial, which had been delayed, and the state agreed to limit its recommendations at sentencing to eighteen years with ten years determinate for Hanslovan, to be served concurrently with the sentence for delivery, and eight years with three years determinate for Dehl, also to be served concurrently. Both Dehl and Hanslovan waived the right to appeal any decisions of the court to that point, as well as their right to appeal from the sentences imposed, although they reserved the right to file a Rule 35 motion. The plea agreement was only available, however, if both Hanslovan and Dehl pled guilty. Furthermore, if either Hanslovan or Dehl could later show “good cause” for the withdrawal of their guilty plea, the other person’s plea would automatically be set aside as well. During his plea colloquy, Hanslovan expressed some reluctance to follow through with the agreement, noting that it was highly beneficial for Dehl, but not so appealing for himself. Hanslovan informed the court that if the two pleas had not been tied together, he probably would have gone to trial on the kidnapping charges. Nonetheless, he denied that there were any other promises or commitments made to him, or any threats or improper pressures affecting his plea. The court found a factual basis to support Hanslovaris guilty plea, and engaged in a similar plea colloquy with Dehl prior to accepting both guilty pleas to the kidnapping charges.

One month before sentencing on the two charges, and in the midst of Huntsman’s trial, Hanslovan moved to withdraw his guilty plea to the kidnapping charge and his attorney moved to withdraw as counsel of record. During the hearing on his attorney’s motion, the court was informed for the first time of a secret deal between Hanslovan and Dehl which contributed to Hanslovaris guilty plea for kidnapping. Both Hanslovaris and Dehl’s attorneys knew of the secret arrangement, and allegedly counseled Hanslovan not to mention it to the court. The attorneys both asserted that they had clarified that Hanslovan could tell the court about it, but that he could not base his plea on the secret deal. Hanslovan was initially reluctant to accept the plea agreement from the state, concerned by how old he would be when released from prison and his employability at that age. In order to eliminate that concern, Dehl informed Hanslovan that her brother owned a farm and Hanslovan would have a job there and a place to live when he got out of prison.1 Dehl’s brother also offered to put money on the books at the prison for Hanslovan so that he could purchase items while incarcerated. Dehl’s attorney was not able to confirm the brother’s offer for Hanslovan prior to the plea entry, but both attorneys informed him that this offer could not be put in writing and would not be enforceable. It was later discovered that Dehl’s brother told Dehl to tell Hanslovan anything he needed to hear so that Dehl could take advantage of the plea agreement.

Hanslovan testified in support of his attorney’s motion to withdraw as counsel of record, accusing him of coercion relating to the kidnapping plea and showing more concern for Dehl’s welfare than for his own. Upon inquiry from the court, Hanslovaris attorney revealed that he filed the motion to withdraw the guilty plea at Hanslovaris request, but that he could not ethically support such a motion because it lacked a factual basis. Hanslovaris attorney was granted leave to withdraw as counsel of record, and new coun[534]*534sel was appointed to assist Hanslovan on his motion to withdraw the guilty plea.

Two weeks later, the court heard Hanslovan’s motion. He asserted four reasons to withdraw his plea to the kidnapping charge and identified one reason to withdraw his plea to the delivery charge, although withdrawal of that plea was not part of the original motion. His new attorney conceded that the only possible basis for withdrawing the delivery plea would be coercion, but could not identify any evidence in the record to support that claim. To support withdrawal of his plea to the kidnapping charge, Hanslovan relied on the state’s breach of the plea agreement by requesting a polygraph test prior to testifying for the state,2

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Bluebook (online)
211 P.3d 775, 147 Idaho 530, 2008 Ida. App. LEXIS 73, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-hanslovan-idahoctapp-2008.