United States v. LaVallee

422 F. Supp. 1042, 1976 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 12278
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedNovember 16, 1976
DocketNo. 72 Civ. 4336
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 422 F. Supp. 1042 (United States v. LaVallee) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. LaVallee, 422 F. Supp. 1042, 1976 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 12278 (S.D.N.Y. 1976).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

KEVIN THOMAS DUFFY, District Judge.

This case is once more before this Court, after having been remanded to State court for an evidentiary hearing. The remand was ordered in light of the sudden appearance of two psychiatric reports which were produced by the State respondents only on appeal from my order vacating petitionér’s guilty plea on the ground of incompetence and granting a writ of habeas corpus unless petitioner reaffirmed his plea in State court. The facts surrounding his incarceration are detailed in my opinion of February 25, 1975, 390 F.Supp. 383 (S.D.N.Y.1975) and in the opinion of the Court of Appeals, 523 F.2d 539 (2d Cir. 1975).

On September 13, 1968, petitioner Suggs pleaded guilty to one count of rape and one count of robbery before Justice Nunez of the State Supreme Court, New York County, in satisfaction of two indictments filed July 30, 1968, charging petitioner with various counts of rape, sodomy, robbery and possession of a weapon. As a result of answers given by Suggs to extensive questioning by the court, he was ordered to Bellevue Psychiatric Hospital for a psychiatric examination and report. His plea, however, was accepted and a date was set for sentencing.

A psychiatric report was completed and sent to the court by Drs. Martin I. Lubin and Laszlo Kedar on October 21, 1968, indicating that Suggs was a paranoid-type schizophrenic, who was “incapable of understanding the charge, proceedings or making his defense.” Pursuant to Section 662 of the then-Code of Criminal Procedure, now contained in Article 730 of the Criminal Procedure Law, Suggs was committed to the custody of the Commissioner of Mental Hygiene on November 6, 1968, by order of Justice Gold after a hearing, and was committed to Matteawan State Hospital for the Criminally Insane on November 15, 1968. On April 9, 1969, Suggs was certified as competent and returned to the court for sentencing, which was imposed on June 6, 1969.

My decision granting habeas corpus relief was based in part on the Lubin-Kedar report of October 21, 1968, which stated that petitioner was psychotic at that time and formed the basis of an inference that he was incompetent at the time his plea was taken. This report was the only available psychiatric report in the record before me. On appeal, however, the State requested leave to expand the record (instead of requesting remand to me) to include two psychiatric reports dated July 23, 1968 and May 20, 1969 prepared by Dr. Emanuel Messinger, which stated that Suggs was not psychotic. In so finding, they flatly contradicted the reports upon which petitioner’s hospitalization, and my conclusions of February 25, 1975, were primarily based. In light of these newly discovered reports, the Court of Appeals directed that an evidentiary hearing be held, leaving the forum to my discretion. 523 F.2d 539 (2d Cir. 1975). Since necessary witnesses included Justices of the State Supreme Court, I requested from the State court findings concerning knowledge of the existence of the Messing-er reports as bearing on the validity of Sugg’s plea. 400 F.Supp. 1366 (S.D.N.Y. 1975). The State court hearing, however, did not focus on the lack of awareness of the reports; instead, based on the evidence adduced, Judge Melia concluded that petitioner was competent at the time his plea was taken and that petitioner had ratified the plea at the time of sentencing.

Petitioner now asserts that he is entitled to a writ of habeas corpus notwithstanding this State court determination, contending that the guilty plea should be set aside since he was incompetent at the time the plea was entered, and, in any event, the failure to supply his defense counsel with the Mes-[1044]*1044singer report of July 23, 1968 violated his right to due process. Alternatively, he seeks a full evidentiary hearing in this Court. The State respondent has cross-moved to dismiss the proceedings for failure to exhaust State remedies.

The State’s contention that petitioner’s present relief lies in a direct appeal of Judge Melia’s finding in the State appellate system is meaningless at this stage of the proceedings. The issue of petitioner’s competency at the time of plea has already been argued before a State appellate court in a coram nobis petition which was denied in 1973.

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422 F. Supp. 1042, 1976 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 12278, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-lavallee-nysd-1976.