United States v. Dawson

10 M.J. 142, 1981 CMA LEXIS 16884
CourtUnited States Court of Military Appeals
DecidedJanuary 12, 1981
DocketNo. 38,445; CM 438463
StatusPublished
Cited by42 cases

This text of 10 M.J. 142 (United States v. Dawson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Military Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Dawson, 10 M.J. 142, 1981 CMA LEXIS 16884 (cma 1981).

Opinions

Opinion

FLETCHER, Judge:

This case requires us to examine a certain plea-bargaining practice in the armed services.

On April 27, 1979, Brigadier General Healy, an acting general court-martial convening authority, referred to a general court-martial various charges and specifications against the appellant. Shortly thereafter, on April 30, 1979, the appellant, with advice of counsel, entered into a pretrial agreement with General Healy. In return for the appellant’s pleas of guilty, this acting general court-martial convening authority promised to approve a sentence no greater than a dishonorable discharge, confinement at hard labor for 2 years, total forfeitures for 2 years and reduction to the pay grade of E-l. There was not provision for the convening authority to suspend any portion of the sentence as authorized under Article 71, Uniform Code of Military Justice, 10 U.S.C. § 871. See Article 72(a), UCMJ, 10 U.S.C.A. § 872(a). The agreement did include the following provision:

It is expressly agreed by the accused that .he will not commit any violation of the Uniform Code of Military Justice between the date of trial and the date of the convening authority’s action. Such a violation will authorize the convening authority to approve any sentence adjudged.

On May 9, 1979, the appellant was arraigned on four separate charges under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. He pleaded guilty to attempted larceny, conspiracy to commit housebreaking, and housebreaking, in violation of Articles 80, 81, and 130, UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. §§ 880, 881, and 930, respectively. An additional charge of breaking restriction was dismissed upon motion of the defense prior to pleas. The military judge approved the pretrial agreement and accepted these pleas of guilty. He entered findings of guilty to these charges. The judge then sentenced the appellant to a dishonorable discharge, confinement at hard labor for 5 years, total forfeitures, and reduction to the pay grade of E-l.

After appellant’s trial, a military police investigation report was prepared concerning the appellant. It stated that he wrongfully possessed marihuana and lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) on May 9, 1979, at the Mannheim Confinement Facility. Papers attached to the record of trial indicate that when the appellant’s clothes were searched during his post-trial check-in at the prison, the drugs were discovered. The staff judge advocate forwarded these papers to the convening authority and advised him that he was no longer bound by the pretrial agreement. Defense counsel in a post-trial rebuttal letter challenged the allegation that the appellant’s possession of drugs was with the requisite criminal knowledge. On July 14, 1979, the regular convening authority, Major General Otis, approved the greater sentence awarded by the military judge rather than that contained in the pretrial agreement. The difference is three years’ confinement at hard labor and forfeitures for that period. The convening authority did not provide an opportunity for the appellant to withdraw his previous pleas of guilty.

The following issues are before us for review:

I

WHETHER THE STAFF JUDGE ADVOCATE’S REVIEW WAS PREJUDI-[144]*144CIALLY INADEQUATE BECAUSE IT DID NOT SPECIFY THE ARTICLE OF THE UCMJ ALLEGEDLY VIOLATED BY THE APPELLANT’S POST-TRIAL CONDUCT, IDENTIFY THE ELEMENTS WHICH COMPRISE THE VIOLATION OR DISCUSS THE SUFFICIENCY OF THE EVIDENCE THAT WOULD ESTABLISH THOSE ELEMENTS, SO AS TO PROVIDE THE CONVENING AUTHORITY WITH A BASIS UPON WHICH TO APPROVE THE ADJUDGED SENTENCE AND THEREBY DEPART FROM THE LIMITATION ON SENTENCE CONTAINED IN THE PRETRIAL AGREEMENT.
II
WHETHER THE CONVENING AUTHORITY’S DEPARTURE FROM THE LIMITATION ON SENTENCE IN A PRETRIAL AGREEMENT, PURSUANT TO A “NO MISCONDUCT” PROVISION, WHERE THE APPELLANT DENIES THE ALLEGATION OF MISCONDUCT, WITHOUT FURTHER INQUIRY VIOLATES DUE PROCESS.
Specified Issue
WHETHER THE POST-TRIAL MISCONDUCT PROVISION IN APPELLANT’S PRETRIAL AGREEMENT IS VOID AS A MATTER OF PUBLIC POLICY OR LAW.

In light of the above, an important question emerges from this ease which has not yet been squarely answered by this Court.

See United States v. Lanzer, 3 M.J. 60, 62 n.4 (C.M.A.1977); United States v. Goode, 1 M.J. 3 (C.M.A.1975). Is this type of post-trial code violation provision a proper condition to be included in a pretrial agreement in the military justice system?

The Government notes that both parties to this agreement were represented by counsel. It also asserts that they possessed relatively equal bargaining power and were mutually advantaged by the agreement. Accordingly, it initially urges us to refrain from interfering with the voluntary product of “the give and take” in the plea bargain negotiation process. See generally Bordenkireher v. Hayes, 434 U.S. 357, 98 S.Ct. 663, 54 L.Ed.2d 604 (1978). This approach to the question must be rejected. It not only assumes an answer to the question posed, but it would exclude from appellate review a significant and substantial facet of our criminal justice system. See generally Note, Plea Bargaining and the Transformation of the Criminal Process, 90 Harv.L.Rev. 564 (1977). There are limits placed on the practice of plea bargaining by constitutional, statutory and decisional law. United States v. Lanzer, supra; see Borderkircher v. Hayes, supra at 365, 98 S.Ct. at 669. In this light, we have stated that the rules of the market place are not permitted to operate unregulated in the military justice system. See United States v. Andreason, 23 U.S.C.M.A. 25, 28, 48 C.M.R. 399, 402 (1974); United States v. Cox, 22 U.S.C.M.A. 69, 71, 46 C.M.R. 69, 71 (1972). Accordingly, despite the mutual assent of the parties,1 [145]*145we must assess the propriety of this particular pretrial agreement provision and its operation in the present case in view of the basic tenets of the military justice system. Article 67, UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. § 867; see Article 45, UCMJ, 10 U.S.C. § 845.

A proper analysis of this pretrial agreement provision must embrace at least three basic questions. First, what does this clause actually entail? Second, what is the purpose of the parties in placing such a provision in a pretrial agreement? Third, what is its impact on the pretrial agreement as a whole and the guilty pleas induced thereby? Evaluating this clause from these three perspectives, we can then determine whether its inclusion in the pretrial agreement or its operation in the present case violates the Code, the Manual or applicable case law.

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Bluebook (online)
10 M.J. 142, 1981 CMA LEXIS 16884, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-dawson-cma-1981.