State v. White

587 N.W.2d 240, 1998 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 311, 1998 WL 889349
CourtSupreme Court of Iowa
DecidedDecember 23, 1998
Docket97-2052
StatusPublished
Cited by37 cases

This text of 587 N.W.2d 240 (State v. White) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Iowa primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. White, 587 N.W.2d 240, 1998 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 311, 1998 WL 889349 (iowa 1998).

Opinions

SNELL, Justice.

This case considers the validity of defendant’s guilty plea. The specific point raised is whether the guilty plea by defendant was made voluntarily, intelligently, and understanding^, as required by our rules of criminal procedure and constitutional standards. Defendant asserts it was not because he was not informed that the maximum punishment that could be imposed included consecutive sentences. We agree the plea was invalid and therefore reverse and remand.

Gary Dean White pled guilty to two offenses of possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver, in Iowa classified as class “C” felonies. See Iowa Code § 124.401(1)(c)(6) (1997). The plea was pursuant to a plea bargain with the State which reduced the charges from class “B” felonies. Id. § 124.401(l)(b)(7). The sentencing judge ordered the defendant to serve ten years in prison for each offense and fined the defendant $1000 for each offense. The court advised that by operation of law a mandatory one-third minimum must be served. Next, the court ordered that the sentences be served consecutively.

The record shows that defendant was never advised of the possibility of consecutive sentences being imposed, either by the judge or by any other source. Defendant claims that for this reason his rights under guilty plea procedures established by Iowa statutes and the United States Constitution have been violated and he should consequently be allowed to withdraw his guilty plea. The defendant’s argument is sound and he should be permitted to plead anew.

Iowa Rule of Criminal Procedure 8(2)(b) states:

b. Pleas of guilty. The court may refuse to accept a plea of guilty, and shall not accept a plea of guilty without first determining that the plea is made voluntarily and intelligently and has a factual basis. Before accepting a plea of guilty, the court must address the defendant personally in open court and inform the defendant of, and determine that the defendant understands, the following:
(1) The nature of the charge to which the plea is offered.
(2) The mandatory minimum punishment, if any, and the maximum possible punishment provided by the statute defining the offense to which the plea is offered.

Our focus is on the language and import of Rule 8(2)(b)(2).

Our appellate review standard in this case is for errors of law. Iowa R.App. P. [242]*2424. We have held that substantial compliance is the measure for judging whether the requirements of Rule 8(2)(b)(2) have been met. State v. Kirchoff, 452 N.W.2d 801, 804 (Iowa 1990).

The constitutional standards for acceptance of a guilty plea have been established by several United States Supreme Court cases. In Jackson v. Denno, 378 U.S. 368, 387, 84 S.Ct. 1774, 1786, 12 L.Ed.2d 908, 922 (1964), the Supreme Court decided that admissibility of a confession must be based on “a reliable determination on the voluntariness issue which satisfies the constitutional rights of the defendant.”

The Supreme Court later applied the same standard to acceptance of guilty pleas:

The requirement that the prosecution spread on the record the prerequisites of a valid waiver is no constitutional innovation. In Carnley v. Cochran, 369 U.S. 506, 516, 82 S.Ct. 884, 890, 8 L.Ed.2d 70, we dealt with a problem of waiver of the right to counsel, a Sixth Amendment right. We held: “Presuming waiver from a silent record is impermissible. The record must show, or there must be an allegation and evidence which show, that an accused was offered counsel but intelligently and understandingly rejected the offer. Anything less is not waiver.”
We think that the same standard must be applied to determining whether a guilty plea is voluntarily made. For, as we have said, a plea of guilty is more than an admission of conduct; it is a conviction. Ignorance, incomprehension, coercion, terror, inducements, subtle or blatant threats might be a perfect cover-up of unconstitutionality. The question of an effective waiver of a federal constitutional right in a proceeding is of course governed by federal standards. Douglas v. Alabama, 380 U.S. 415, 422, 85 S.Ct. 1074, 1078, 13 L.Ed.2d 934.

Boykin v. Alabama, 395 U.S. 238, 242-43, 89 5.Ct. 1709, 1712, 23 L.Ed.2d 274, 279 (1969).

Our court has recognized the standard set forth in Jackson and Boykin:

The requirement of voluntariness stems from the due process mandate that a waiver of constitutional rights, which is implicit in guilty pleas, must be made voluntarily. McCarthy [v. United States], 394 U.S. at 466, 89 S.Ct. at 1171, 22 L.Ed.2d at 425. To be truly voluntary, the plea must not only be free from compulsion, but must also be knowing and intelligent. See Henderson v. Morgan, 426 U.S. 637, 645 & n. 13, 96 S.Ct. 2253, 2257-58, 49 L.Ed.2d 108, 114 (1976); McCarthy, 394 U.S. at 466, 89 S.Ct. at 1171, 22 L.Ed.2d at 425. Thus, the defendant should be cognizant of the constitutional protections to which he would otherwise be entitled, Boykin v. Alabama, 395 U.S. 238, 243, 89 S.Ct. 1709, 1712, 23 L.Ed.2d 274, 279-80 (1969), and the nature of the crime with which he is charged, Smith v. O’Grady, 312 U.S. 329, 332-34, 61 S.Ct. 572, 573-74, 85 L.Ed. 859, 861-62 (1941).

State v. Fluhr, 287 N.W.2d 857, 863 (Iowa 1980).

In 1976 and 1977, the Iowa legislature enacted standards for arraignments and the court’s acceptance of a defendant’s guilty plea, which are now contained in the Iowa Rules of Criminal Procedure. See Iowa R.Crim. P. 8. Iowa Rule of Criminal Procedure 8(2)(b) provides that “the court must address the defendant personally in open court and inform the defendant of, and determine that the defendant understands ... the maximum possible punishment provided by the statute defining the offense to which the plea is offered.” Defendant claims that the words “maximum possible punishment” in Rule 8 mean and require, to be consistent with the constitutional requirements, that he be advised and understand that his guilty plea may result in the imposition of consecutive sentences for his two convictions. It is clear from the language used in Rule 8 and its obvious purpose to recognize rights of defendants, that constitutional rights are implicated. In fact, we have previously said that a defendant’s constitutional rights are specified in Rule 8(2)(b). See Fluhr, 287 N.W.2d at 861.

The Supreme Court has held that the accused must be fully aware of the direct consequences of a guilty plea. Brady v. United States, 397 U.S. 742, 755, 90 S.Ct. 1463, 1472,

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

Related

State of Iowa v. Shannon Paige Hightower
Supreme Court of Iowa, 2024
State of Iowa v. Anthony J. Carty
Court of Appeals of Iowa, 2022
State of Iowa v. Gerald M. Tutson, Jr.
Court of Appeals of Iowa, 2022
State of Iowa v. Kelvin Lynell Scott
Court of Appeals of Iowa, 2022
Anna Sothman v. State of Iowa
Supreme Court of Iowa, 2021
Matthew Wilson v. State of Iowa
Court of Appeals of Iowa, 2021
State of Iowa v. Deantay Darelle Williams
Court of Appeals of Iowa, 2021
Mark Roger Scholtes v. State of Iowa
Court of Appeals of Iowa, 2019
State of Iowa v. Kenneth Lloyd Carmer
Court of Appeals of Iowa, 2019
State of Iowa v. Jeffrey Jordan Cason
919 N.W.2d 766 (Court of Appeals of Iowa, 2018)
People of Michigan v. Kelly Christopher Warren
Michigan Court of Appeals, 2018
State of Iowa v. Thierno Yaya Diallo
Supreme Court of Iowa, 2017
State of Iowa v. Jason Gene Weitzel
Supreme Court of Iowa, 2017
State of Iowa v. Lucas Tyler Iddings
Court of Appeals of Iowa, 2017
State of Iowa v. Thierno Yaya Diallo
Court of Appeals of Iowa, 2017
State of Iowa v. Jason Gene Weitzel
Court of Appeals of Iowa, 2017
State of Iowa v. Dominick R. Marcott
Court of Appeals of Iowa, 2016
State of Iowa v. Kevin Duane Fisher II
877 N.W.2d 676 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 2016)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
587 N.W.2d 240, 1998 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 311, 1998 WL 889349, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-white-iowa-1998.