Tyler v. People

847 P.2d 140, 17 Brief Times Rptr. 317, 1993 Colo. LEXIS 158, 1993 WL 43605
CourtSupreme Court of Colorado
DecidedFebruary 22, 1993
Docket92SC150
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 847 P.2d 140 (Tyler v. People) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Colorado primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Tyler v. People, 847 P.2d 140, 17 Brief Times Rptr. 317, 1993 Colo. LEXIS 158, 1993 WL 43605 (Colo. 1993).

Opinions

Justice ERICKSON

delivered the Opinion of the Court.

The court of appeals in People v. Tyler, No. 90CA0860 (Colo.App. Nov. 21, 1991), affirmed the judgment of conviction and the sentences imposed on Billy Ray Tyler for second-degree burglary and attempted second-degree murder. The court of appeals concluded that the trial judge’s failure to determine on the record whether Tyler desired to relinquish or exercise his constitutional right to testify did not mandate reversal of his judgment of conviction. We granted certiorari and now affirm.

I

On October 3, 1989, Renee Benson heard a window break in her living room. Benson went into her living room, armed with a handgun, and encountered Tyler.1 After Benson fired two shots at Tyler, he attacked her and stabbed her four times with a knife. Tyler was arrested and charged with burglary, assault, attempted murder, and crime of violence.

During the trial, after the prosecution rested, the trial judge asked defense counsel outside the presence of the jury if she was “going to have evidence.” Defense counsel replied that she had to talk to Tyler and then made a verbal motion for acquittal. After the trial judge denied the motion, he advised Tyler outside the presence of the jury of his right to testify in his own defense in accordance with People v. Curtis, 681 P.2d 504 (Colo.1984), and then asked Tyler if he understood the advisement.2 Tyler responded that he understood the advisement. The trial judge then asked Tyler if he had made a decision. Tyler answered that he had not and asked the trial judge if he could “have a brief time to think about it while [he used] the restroom.” The trial judge informed Tyler that he could decide later whether to waive his right to testify.

Following a three-hour recess, the trial judge and counsel discussed proposed jury instructions in Tyler’s presence for a half-hour. After a second recess, court was reconvened with Tyler present. The trial judge stated, “I guess we better have defense rest.” Defense counsel rested and the trial judge proceeded to instruct the jury. The jury convicted Tyler of second-[142]*142degree burglary,3 second-degree assault,4 attempted second-degree murder,5 and crime of violence.6

A divided panel of the court of appeals initially reversed the judgment of conviction because the trial judge did not determine on the record whether Tyler desired to relinquish or exercise his right to testify. The court of appeals subsequently granted the prosecution’s petition for rehearing and issued an opinion affirming the portion of the judgment as to second-degree burglary and attempted second-degree murder. The court of appeals vacated both the portion of the judgment regarding second-degree assault and the consecutive sentences Tyler received for the attempted murder and assault, and remanded with directions for re-sentencing.

We granted certiorari to decide whether a judgment of conviction must be automatically reversed because the record fails to state a defendant’s waiver of the right to testify.7 We hold that a trial judge’s failure to state on the record whether a defendant desires to relinquish or not to exercise his right to testify is not reversible error per se.

II

Curtis, 681 P.2d 504, held that a trial judge must ensure that a defendant’s waiver of the right to testify is voluntary, knowing, and intentional. Id. at 515. In order for a defendant to make a voluntary, knowing, and intentional decision, he must be aware of the right to testify, the consequences of testifying, and his right to take the stand regardless of counsel’s advice to the contrary. Id. at 514.

In order to ensure that the right to testify is voluntarily, knowingly, and intentionally waived, Curtis requires that the trial judge give the defendant an “advisement” outside the presence of the jury:

[Tjhat he has a right to testify, that if he wants to testify then no one can prevent him from doing so, that if he testifies the prosecution will be allowed to cross-examine him, that if he had been convicted of a felony the prosecutor will be entitled to ask him about it and thereby disclose it to the jury, and that if the felony conviction is disclosed to the jury then the jury can be instructed to consider it only as it bears upon his credibility.

Id.

Roelker v. People, 804 P.2d 1336 (Colo.1991), revisited the issue of the waiver of a defendant’s right to testify.8 Roelker addressed the question of “whether Curtis requires the trial judge to ask the defendant personally, on the record, whether he wishes to waive his right, or whether it is sufficient for the trial judge to advise the defendant of his right to testify and of the possible consequences of doing so.” Id. at 1338.

Roelker stated that “[t]he actual holding of Curtis limits the trial judge’s responsi[143]*143bility to advising the defendant of his right to testify and the consequences of doing so. Curtis contains dictum supporting an argument that either defense counsel or the trial judge should question the defendant on the record in order to ‘determine the defendant’s wishes.’ ” Id. Roelker, however, “reject[ed the] argument that the dictum of Curtis mandates a rigid requirement that the trial court question the defendant to determine whether his waiver is truly voluntary.” Id. at 1339.

Instead, Roelker stated that “Curtis did not decide what the minimum requirements are to establish a waiver of a defendant’s right to testify in his own defense.” Id. Despite the failure of the trial judge to ask the defendant personally, on the record, whether he wished to waive the right to testify, Roelker affirmed the trial judge’s determination that the defendant effectively waived his right to testify. Id.

Ill

In this case, we address the waiver of a defendant’s right to testify in a situation where the record contains no explicit reference that the defendant waived his right to testify. While we reaffirm the principle that a waiver of the right to testify must be voluntary, knowing, and intentional to be effective, we hold that it is not reversible error per se when the waiver does not appear on the record.

In general, the burden is on the prosecution to show an effective waiver of a fundamental constitutional right. Curtis, 681 P.2d at 504 n. 16 (citing Barker v. Wingo, 407 U.S. 514, 529, 92 S.Ct. 2182, 2191, 33 L.Ed.2d 101 (1972)). If the initial burden is met by the prosecution through the establishment of a prima facie case of waiver, then in order to permit the court to find the waiver ineffective, the defendant must present evidence from which the court could reasonably infer that waiver was not voluntary, knowing, and intentional. Curtis, 681 P.2d at 504 n. 16; see also People v. Lindsey,

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Tyler v. People
847 P.2d 140 (Supreme Court of Colorado, 1993)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
847 P.2d 140, 17 Brief Times Rptr. 317, 1993 Colo. LEXIS 158, 1993 WL 43605, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/tyler-v-people-colo-1993.