State v. Mobley

568 So. 2d 1368, 1990 WL 157556
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedOctober 16, 1990
DocketKA 89 1697
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 568 So. 2d 1368 (State v. Mobley) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Mobley, 568 So. 2d 1368, 1990 WL 157556 (La. Ct. App. 1990).

Opinion

568 So.2d 1368 (1990)

STATE of Louisiana
v.
Kathleen MOBLEY.

No. KA 89 1697.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, First Circuit.

October 16, 1990.

*1370 William R. Campbell, Jr., New Orleans, David J. Knight, Asst. Dist. Atty. Covington, for the State.

Wendell E. Tanner, Slidell, for appellant.

Before COVINGTON, C.J., and LANIER and ALFORD, JJ.

LANIER, Judge.

Defendant, Kathleen Mobley, was charged by bill of information with operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated (DWI), third offense, in violation of La.R.S. 14:98. She was tried by jury and convicted as charged. Subsequently, the trial court sentenced her to imprisonment in the parish jail for a term of two years, with six months of the term to be served without benefit of parole, probation or suspension of sentence. The court suspended execution of the remaining one year and six months of the term and placed defendant on supervised probation for two years, subject to general conditions and the specific conditions that she attend and successfully complete a substance abuse program and a driver improvement program. This appeal followed.

FACTS

At about 12:33 a.m. on July 16, 1988, Covington City Police Patrolman Norman Manton was traveling westbound in his police unit on Boston Street in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, when he noticed a vehicle driven by defendant traveling westbound in the eastbound lane of Boston Street. Manton activated the emergency lights of his police unit. Defendant drove her vehicle into a parking lot where she stopped. Manton asked defendant to exit her vehicle and approach his unit. As she did so, she "staggered somewhat" and was "real unsteady". Her movements were erratic. She constantly moved her hands to maintain her balance. She was unstable and swaying as she walked. When defendant reached Manton's unit, she leaned on it for support. When Manton spoke to defendant, he detected a strong odor of alcohol about her breath. Defendant's clothing "looked disarranged", and her speech was slurred. Defendant initially produced an expired driver's license. When Manton asked her where was her current license, she told him she had none because it had been suspended as a result of a prior DWI. Following poor performances on several field sobriety tests, defendant was placed under arrest and transported to the Covington Police Department. At the police department, defendant was advised of her rights relevant to a chemical test for intoxication. She agreed to take a breath analysis test. The breath analysis test results showed defendant had a .24 percent blood alcohol reading.

The defendant was subsequently charged with third offense DWI. The predicate offenses alleged to support this charge were a DWI conviction in the 22nd Judicial District Court on May 11, 1984, under docket number 120103, and a DWI conviction in the 22nd Judicial District Court on April 9, 1987, under docket number 157083.

*1371 PROPER BOYKIN ADVICE FOR PREDICATE OFFENSE

(Assignment of error 1)

The defendant contends the trial court erred "in denying appellant's Motion to Quash ... the guilty plea entered May 11, 1984, Docket # 120103, 22nd Judicial District Court, Parish of St. Tammany, Louisiana" because this guilty plea "was invalid and cannot be used as a predicate offense to the present offense inasmuch as the plea was not obtained in accordance with the guidelines set forth in Boykin v. Alabama, 395 U.S. 238, 89 S.Ct. 1709 [23 L.Ed.2d 274] (1969)."

The record shows that on December 13, 1988, the defendant filed a motion to quash the May 11, 1984 DWI conviction for use as a predicate offense. The court minutes reflect that the motion was heard on January 4, 1989, the matter was submitted to the court, and the court took the matter under advisement. The minutes do not reflect that evidence was presented. On January 23, 1989, the motion was denied.

The trial of this case was held on March 28, 1989. At the trial, the transcript of the Boykin examination of the defendant on May 11, 1984, was filed in evidence. The transcript reflects that the defendant was one of twenty-four defendants who were questioned as a group but who were required to answer individually. The defendant was individually asked her age and highest grade of education and she responded that she was 29 and went to the tenth grade. The group was asked if everyone could read, write and speak the English language, and the defendant individually responded yes. The group was asked if they understood they were charged with DWI, and the defendant responded yes. The group was advised that DWI was a "cumulative offense", that if you plead guilty to DWI-1 "there's a mandatory jail sentence involved for DWI-2" and "the sentence that you will receive will be much more severe than the sentence you're going to receive today." The defendant individually responded that she understood that. The defendant responded no when asked if anyone coerced her or placed her under duress to obtain her guilty plea. She responded no when asked if she was promised anything to get her guilty plea. When asked if her plea was her "own free will and desire", she responded yes. The trial judge then stated the following:

Q. All of you have the following constitutional rights. You must understand these rights and waive them before I can accept your guilty plea. So if you have any questions, stop me, and I will try to explain them to you in greater detail. All of you have a right to an attorney. If you cannot afford one, one will be appointed by the Court to represent you free of charge. You all have a right to a trial. During that trial, the State must prove their case against you beyond a reasonable doubt. During that trial, you have a right against self-incrimination. That is, you don't have to take the stand and testify against yourself. During that trial, you have a right to cross-examine the State's witnesses against you. If you're not satisfied with the outcome of the trial, you have a right to appeal to the higher courts of this State. And if you cannot afford an attorney, the State of Louisiana will provide you one free of charge. Do all of you understand those constitutional rights?

The defendant individually responded yes, and, when asked if she waived those constitutional rights, she also responded yes. Thereafter, the defendant was individually asked how she pled, and she responded guilty. The trial court then made the following factual finding:

Court at this time accepts the guilty pleas and finds they were made knowingly and willfully by the defendants.

Boykin mandates that before a trial judge can accept a plea of guilty he must inform the defendant that by pleading guilty he is waiving (1) his privilege against compulsory self-incrimination, (2) his right to trial (or jury trial where applicable), and (3) his right to confront (cross-examine) his accusers. In Louisiana this rule has been made applicable to misdemeanor guilty pleas. State v. Jones, 404 So.2d 1192 (La. *1372 1981). When a defendant collaterally contests the validity of a guilty plea for a predicate offense, the burden is placed on the State to prove compliance with Boykin. State v. Longo, 560 So.2d 530 (La.App. 1st Cir.1990). Cf. State v. LeFevre, 419 So.2d 862 (La.1982). The Boykin transcript herein reflects the defendant was advised of, understood and waived the triad of Boykin rights.

This assignment of error is without merit.[1]

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

State v. Ostrom
980 So. 2d 890 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2008)
Parker v. State
736 So. 2d 521 (Court of Appeals of Mississippi, 1999)
State v. Mobley
592 So. 2d 1282 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1992)
Scott v. Clark
583 So. 2d 938 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1991)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
568 So. 2d 1368, 1990 WL 157556, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-mobley-lactapp-1990.