State v. Ramirez

2012 NMCA 057, 278 P.3d 569, 1 N.M. Ct. App. 769, 2012 WL 2330256
New Mexico Court of Appeals·Decided June 5, 2012·No. 30,205·Published·Cited by 12 cases

Opinion

278 P.3d 569 (2012)
2012-NMCA-057

STATE of New Mexico, Respondent-Appellee,
v.
Martin RAMIREZ, a/k/a Richard G. Sanchez, Petitioner-Appellant.

No. 30,205.

Court of Appeals of New Mexico.

April 16, 2012.
Certiorari Granted, June 5, 2012, No. 33,604.

*570 Gary K. King, Attorney General, William Lazar, Assistant Attorney General, Santa Fe, NM, for Appellee.

Dane Eric Hannum, Attorney at Law, Dane Eric Hannum, Albuquerque, NM, for Appellant.

The Appellate Law Office of Scott M. Davidson, Scott M. Davidson, Albuquerque, NM, Amicus Curiae for New Mexico Criminal Defense Lawyers Association.

OPINION

KENNEDY, Judge.

{1} Martin Ramirez, a/k/a Richard Sanchez, (Petitioner) appeals the district court's denial of his writ of coram nobis, which sought to vacate Petitioner's twelve-year-old conviction due to ineffective assistance of counsel under State v. Paredez, 2004-NMSC-036, 136 N.M. 533, 101 P.3d 799. Paredez requires appointed counsel to instruct defendants about the specific immigration consequences associated with a conviction for the charged crime prior to pleading guilty. Id. ¶ 9. This duty is more pressing in a case like this in which deportation was a near certainty for a relatively minor offense. The district court denied the writ on the ground that the rule announced in Paredez should not be applied retroactively to collateral challenges to final judgments and sentences. We reverse and hold that the ineffective assistance of counsel rules stated in Paredez and Padilla v. Kentucky, ___ U.S. ___, 130 S.Ct. 1473, 1486, 176 L.Ed.2d 284 (2010) (holding that defense counsel must inform his or her client whether the client's plea carries a risk of deportation) are but extensions of a previously entrenched duty to provide representation and are retroactive. We remand for further proceedings consistent with this Opinion.

I. BACKGROUND

{2} In 2009, Petitioner filed a writ of coram nobis, requesting the district court to vacate his 1997 misdemeanor convictions for possession of marijuana (under one ounce), possession of drug paraphernalia, and concealing identity. In his writ, Petitioner contended that he was denied his right to effective assistance of counsel because his appointed counsel failed to instruct him about any immigration consequences of pleading guilty to the crimes as required by Paredez, 2004-NMSC-036, ¶ 19, 136 N.M. 533, 101 P.3d 799.

{3} At the hearing, Petitioner proffered evidence to prove that his attorney failed to instruct him about the immigration consequences and that this failure prejudiced him. The State did not contest the evidence, arguing only that it was irrelevant and that Petitioner was not entitled to relief because Paredez was not retroactive. The district court, accordingly, found that Petitioner's proffer was "essentially admitted . . . [and] not disputed" and proceeded to hear argument on whether Paredez was retroactive. The district court subsequently denied Petitioner's request on the ground that Paredez did not apply retroactively. Petitioner now appeals the district court's denial of his writ of coram nobis. We interpret such actions as motions pursuant to Rule 1-060(B) NMRA. State v. Barraza, 2011-NMCA-111, ¶ 5, ___ N.M. ___, 267 P.3d 815.

II. DISCUSSION

A. Paredez and Padilla Apply Retroactively

{4} In Paredez, the New Mexico Supreme Court held that "criminal defense *571 attorneys are obligated to determine the immigration status of their clients. If a client is a non-citizen, the attorney must advise that client of the specific immigration consequences of pleading guilty, including whether deportation would be virtually certain." 2004-NMSC-036, ¶ 19, 136 N.M. 533, 101 P.3d 799. Our Supreme Court concluded that failure to inform the defendant of these consequences would constitute ineffective assistance of counsel if the defendant suffered prejudice due to the omission. Id. Six years later, the United States Supreme Court in Padilla similarly held that "counsel must inform her client whether his plea carries a risk of deportation." 130 S.Ct. at 1486. The Supreme Court explained: "Our longstanding Sixth Amendment precedents, the seriousness of deportation as a consequence of a criminal plea, and the concomitant impact of deportation on families living lawfully in this country demand no less." Id. The question before us today is whether the rule stated in Paredez and Padilla applies retroactively to cases on collateral review. "Retroactivity is a legal question, which we review de novo." Kersey v. Hatch, 2010-NMSC-020, ¶ 14, 148 N.M. 381, 237 P.3d 683 (internal quotation marks and citation omitted).

{5} Although this is an issue of first impression in New Mexico, a number of state and federal appellate decisions have addressed the issue of retroactivity, causing a national split. A number have held that Padilla is retroactive. United States v. Orocio, 645 F.3d 630 (3d Cir.2011); People v. Gutierrez, 352 Ill.Dec. 505, 954 N.E.2d 365 (Ill.App.Ct.2011); Denisyuk v. State, 422 Md. 462, 30 A.3d 914 (2011); Commonwealth v. Clarke, 460 Mass. 30, 949 N.E.2d 892 (2011); Campos v. State, 798 N.W.2d 565 (Minn.Ct. App.2011); People v. Nunez, 30 Misc.3d 55, 917 N.Y.S.2d 806 (N.Y.App. Term 2010); Ex parte De Los Reyes, 350 S.W.3d 723 (Tex.Ct. App.2011). On the other hand, some have held that Padilla is not retroactive. Chaidez v. United States, 655 F.3d 684 (7th Cir.2011); United States v. Chang Hong, 671 F.3d 1147 (10th Cir.2011); State v. Poblete, 227 Ariz. 537, 260 P.3d 1102 (App.2011); Hernandez v. State, 61 So.3d 1144 (Fla.Dist.Ct.App.2011); State v. Shaikh, 65 So.3d 539 (Fla.Dist.Ct. App.2011); Barrios-Cruz v. State, 63 So.3d 868 (Fla.Dist.Ct.App.2011); Gomez v. State, No. E2010-01319-CCA-R3-PC, 2011 WL 1797305 (Tenn.Crim.App. May 12, 2011) (unpublished decision). The primary dividing line is the question of whether this principle is a "new" or "old" rule of law. "Old" rules are generally accorded retroactivity. For the reasons explained below, we are persuaded that those courts, which conclude that Padilla does not establish a new rule and is retroactive, represent the better reasoned view.

{6} New Mexico has adopted the approach set out by the United States Supreme Court in Teague v. Lane, 489 U.S. 288, 109 S.Ct. 1060, 103 L.Ed.2d 334 (1989), to determine whether a rule is new or old for purposes of retroactivity. See State v. Frawley, 2007-NMSC-057, ¶ 34, 143 N.M. 7, 172 P.3d 144. "If it is an old rule, it applies both on direct and collateral review. If it is a new rule, it generally applies only to cases that are still on direct review." Id. ¶ 34 (internal quotation marks and citations omitted). The exception to this principle is that "[a] new rule . . .

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State v. Ramirez, 2012 NMCA 057, 278 P.3d 569, 1 N.M. Ct. App. 769, 2012 WL 2330256 (N.M. Ct. App. 2012).

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