Wilkie v. State

2002 WY 164, 56 P.3d 1023, 2002 Wyo. LEXIS 184, 2002 WL 31427369
CourtWyoming Supreme Court
DecidedOctober 31, 2002
Docket01-218
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 2002 WY 164 (Wilkie v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Wyoming Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Wilkie v. State, 2002 WY 164, 56 P.3d 1023, 2002 Wyo. LEXIS 184, 2002 WL 31427369 (Wyo. 2002).

Opinion

VOIGT, Justice.

[T1] Petitioner, Roy Wilkie (Wilkie), was charged on June 22, 2000, with one count of domestic battery. After a jury found Wilkie guilty, the Cireuait Court of the Third Judicial District, Sweetwater County, sentenced him to six months incarceration with all but four days suspended and placed him on supervised probation for one year. Wilkie appealed his conviction to the district court, which affirmed the cireuit court. Wilkie then filed a Petition for Writ of Review with this Court. We reverse because Wilkie was denied his constitutional right to counsel in the circuit court.

*1024 ISSUE

[12] While Wilkie presents seven issues on appeal, the resolution of one of those issues renders the others moot. 1 Therefore, we address only the issue of whether Wilkie was denied his right to counsel.

FACTS

[13] Wilkie was charged with domestic battery for touching a household member in a rude, insolent, or angry manner in violation of Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 6-2-501(b) (Lexis 1999). He represented himself pro se at his jury trial because of an unusual exchange with the circuit court at arraignment that left him without counsel. Concerning whether Wilkie would have an attorney, the following dialogue took place:

THE COURT: Do you intend to represent yourself, hire your own attorney or ask the Court to consider the appointment of the Public Defender to represent you?
MR. WILKIE: I'm going to have to represent myself.
THE COURT: Before a Judge or a Jury?
MR. WILKIE: Jury.
THE COURT: Every tried a Jury Trial before?
MR. WILKIE: No, I haven't.
THE COURT: Understand that while it's your right to do that, you're responsible to do the same things that lawyers do when they represent clients and the Court will hold you to the same standard of knowledge, expertise and skill that it holds any lawyer to? Still wish to represent yourself before a jury, Mr. Wilkie?
MR. WILKIE: Well, they're not going to let me get an appointed lawyer because I make too much money, but I really don't make that much money (unintelligible).
THE COURT: Well, that's not my (unintelligible). How much you making a month at Von's Plumbing?
MR. WILKIE: About a thousand a month.
THE COURT: Youre right. You will sign a waiver of your right to be tried by a, with assistance of Counsel; Prose [sic] Jury. So ordered.

(Emphasis added.) Wilkie proceeded to represent himself pro se and was subsequently found guilty by a jury.

DISCUSSION

[T4] Wilkie alleges that he was denied his right to counsel as guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment of the United States Constitution 2 and Wyo. Const. art. 1, § 10 3 when, at his arraignment, the circuit court did not personally advise him of his right to counsel and its discussion with him concerning attorneys left him without representation. Instead, he was given a form to read regarding his constitutional rights, which he initialed. Wilkie argues that he did not knowingly and voluntarily waive his right to counsel, and initialing the Advisement of Rights form was not a valid waiver of counsel. 4 Constitutional issues are questions of law that we review de novo. Taylor v. State, 7 P.3d 15, 19 (Wyo.2000).

[15] This Court has followed the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit with respect to whether a waiver of the right to counsel is voluntarily, knowingly, *1025 and intelligently made. Vargas v. State, 963 P.2d 984, 990 (Wyo.1998). First, the court determines whether a defendant voluntarily waived this right. United States v. Taylor, 113 F.3d 1136, 1140 (10th Cir.1997), cert. denied, 528 U.S. 904, 120 S.Ct. 244, 145 L.Ed.2d 205 (1999). If it determines that the right has been voluntarily waived, the court then determines whether the defendant waived this right knowingly and intelligently. Id. 5 In that regard, a reviewing court should indulge every reasonable presumption against waiver. Id. (quoting Baker v. Kaiser, 929 F.2d 1495, 1500 (10th Cir.1991)).

[¥6] In the instant case, proper inquiries were not made to determine whether Wilkie wanted to be represented by appointed counsel. Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 7-6-106(a) (LexisNexis 2001) requires the court at a defendant's first court appearance to determine whether the defendant is a "needy person." A needy person is defined under Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 7-6-102(a)(iv) (LexisNexis 2001) as "a person who at the time his need is determined is unable to provide for the full payment of an attorney and all other necessary expenses of representation[.]" The only evidence in the record of the circuit court's examination of Wilkie's ability to pay for counsel was the question of how much he made at Von's Plumbing.

[17] The brief question and answer session that occurred in this case cannot be construed as a voluntary waiver by Wilkie of his right to counsel. The cireuit court did not inform Wilkie that he had a right to an attorney if he could not afford one, the circuit court merely queried whether Wilkie intended to represent himself, hire an attorney, or ask the court to consider the appointment of a public defender. Wilkie clearly had the impression from someone that he made too much money to have a public defender. Indeed, Wilkie's comments-"Well, they're not going to let me get an appointed lawyer because I make too much money"-sounds as if he believed that the decision had already been made. Yet the cireuit court did not follow up on that comment to determine the source of Wilkie's information or explain to Wilkie that it was up to the court to make that decision. 6 Further, the circuit court made no determination whether the $1,000.00 per month figure was gross or net, or if Wilkie was a needy person as defined by statute. Instead, the cireuit court simply told Wilkie, "[yjou will sign a waiver." Wilkie was not given a choice whether or not to waive anything.

[18] Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 7-6-107 (Lexis-Nexis 2001) allows for the waiver of the right to an attorney if "the court finds that the person has acted with full awareness of his rights and of the consequences of a waiver...." To determine whether the waiver has been fully informed, "the court shall consider such factors as the person's age, education, familiarity with the English language and the complexity of the crime involved." Id. (emphasis added). The circuit court did not consider any of these factors.

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Bluebook (online)
2002 WY 164, 56 P.3d 1023, 2002 Wyo. LEXIS 184, 2002 WL 31427369, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/wilkie-v-state-wyo-2002.