Huntley v. State

• Decision Date: 27 October 2006
• Docket Number: No. 27540.,27540.
• Citation: 204 S.W.3d 668
• Parties: Gary R. HUNTLEY, Appellant, v. STATE of Missouri, Respondent.
• Court: Missouri Court of Appeals

204 S.W.3d 668

Gary R. HUNTLEY, Appellant, v. STATE of Missouri, Respondent.

No. 27540.

Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District, Division Two.

October 27, 2006.

Nancy A. McKerrow, Columbia, MO, for Appellant.

Cecily L. Daller, Jefferson City, MO, for Respondent.

JEFFREY W. BATES, Chief Judge.

Gary R. Huntley (Huntley) appeals from an order denying his Rule 24.035 motion for post-conviction relief from his pleas of guilty to three charges of burglary in the first degree. See § 569.160.¹ One of the essential elements of this crime is that the defendant enter a building or inhabitable structure "for the purpose of committing a crime therein. . . ." While attempting to avoid being arrested by the police, Huntley forced his way into three apartments with one or more occupants inside. In Huntley's amended motion, he contended there was no factual basis for his guilty pleas. See Rule 24.02(e). The only alleged deficiency was the absence of an assertion at the plea hearing "that Movant entered the apartments ... for the purpose of committing a crime therein." Huntley took the position that the files and records from his underlying criminal case conclusively proved he was entitled to post-conviction relief, so he waived his right to an evidentiary hearing. The motion court denied relief, and this appeal followed. We affirm.

I. Factual and Procedural Background

On July 23, 2003, Huntley was charged by felony information with three counts of burglary in the first degree. Count I of the information read as follows:

The Prosecuting Attorney . . . charges that the defendant, in violation of Section 569.160 . . . committed the class B felony of burglary in the first degree, punishable upon conviction under Section 558.011.1(2) . . . in that on or about the 4th day of January, 2003 . . . the defendant, GARY R HUNTLEY, knowingly entered unlawfully in an in habitable [sic] structure, located at [victim Nichols' address] and possessed by [victim Nichols], for the purpose of resisting arrest therein, and while in such inhabitable structure there was present in such inhabitable structure, [victim Nichols], a person who was not a participant in the crime.

Except for the substitution of the names and addresses of victims Keeth and Dodson, Counts II and III were identical. The felony information was read to Huntley at his arraignment on July 25, 2003. He entered a plea of not guilty on all counts. Thereafter, Huntley waived his right to a jury trial and was scheduled to be tried by the court on June 9, 2004.

On the day of trial, Huntley pled guilty to all three counts pursuant to a plea agreement he had reached with the State. In exchange for Huntley's guilty pleas, the State agreed to dismiss a separate felony charge against him and to recommend a concurrent 12-year sentence on each count. At the plea hearing, the court confirmed Huntley's intention to withdraw his not-guilty pleas and recited the terms of the plea agreement. The court then placed Huntley under oath and elicited the following testimony from him:

THE COURT: And how old are you, sir?

[Huntley]: Thirty.

THE COURT: How far did you go in school?

[Huntley]: Eleventh grade.

THE COURT: Do you read, write, and understand the English language?

[Huntley]: Yes, Your Honor.

THE COURT: Are you under the influence of any medication, alcohol, or drugs here today?

[Huntley]: No, sir.

THE COURT: Are you in good physical and mental health here today?

[Huntley]: Yes, sir.

THE COURT: Have you ever been treated for any mental disorder or been under the care of a psychiatrist or psychologist?

[Huntley]: No, sir.

THE COURT: [Defense counsel], do you know of any competency issues concerning your client?

[Defense counsel]: No, Your Honor.

THE COURT: Mr. Huntley, I briefly read the charges against you before I placed you under oath. Do you understand those charges?

[Huntley]: Yes, sir.

THE COURT: Do you have any questions about the charges?

[Huntley]: No, sir.

THE COURT: And I read your plea agreement. Do you understand the plea agreement?

[Huntley]: Yes, Your Honor.

THE COURT: Do you have any questions about the plea agreement?

[Huntley]: No, sir.

THE COURT: Now, have you had sufficient time to talk with [defense counsel] about this case?

[Huntley]: Yes, sir.

The court then asked the prosecutor to inform Huntley of the range of punishment and factual basis for the plea. The prosecutor gave the following response:

Counts I, II, and III are all Class B felonies. A Class B felony carries 5 to 15 years in the Department of Corrections. Therefore, the defendant is facing a maximum of 45 years in prison.

The factual basis is that on January 4th of 2003 Corporal Blane Kennard of the Greene County Sheriff's Department initiated a traffic stop on a Chevy Astro van in that area of Farm Road 89 and State Highway 266 in Greene County, Missouri for the reason that the driver, Gary R. Huntley, had an active felony warrant.

Mr. Huntley refused to stop and led the officer on a high speed chase at speeds of over 100 miles per hour. The vehicle pursuit ended at an apartment complex at 440 South New in Springfield, Greene County, Missouri.

The vehicle chase ended when Mr. Huntley fled from the vehicle into the apartment complex. Mr. Huntley forced open the door to apartment A-103, a resident Patricia Nichols was home at the time. She reported that Mr. Huntley grabbed her by the arm and removed a phone from her hand.

Ms. Nichols further reported that Mr. Huntley then ripped the phone cord from the wall. Mr. Huntley then entered a second apartment numbered A-301. That apartment was possessed by Larra Keeth, who was home at the time. Ms. Keeth reported that she did not give Mr. Huntley permission to enter the apartment.

Mr. Huntley then entered a third apartment numbered A-302. That apartment was possessed by Joselyn Dodson, who was also home at the time along with two juveniles and person by the name of William Leeth (ph.). Ms. Dodson reported that she did not give Mr. Huntley permission to enter the apartment. Mr. Huntley was then taken into custody.

On January 5th of 2003 Corporal Chad White of the Springfield Police Department interviewed Mr. Huntley about these events. After being advised of his Miranda rights Mr. Huntley agreed to speak with Corporal White. Mr. Huntley stated that he knew he had an active warrant for his arrest.

Mr. Huntley further stated that he did not know the residents of the three apartments and knew that he did not have permission to enter the apartments.

After this recitation by the prosecutor of the facts supporting the first degree burglary charges, the following exchange occurred between the court and defense counsel:

THE COURT: [Defense counsel], do you believe if this case went to trial the State could make a submissible case?

[Defense counsel]: Yes, Your Honor. I — I do want to comment just one thing. I think [the prosecutor] said there was a felony warrant for my client at the time. I think it was a contempt action, a child support.

THE COURT: I think your client had said that he thought there was a warrant for his arrest and that's why he ran.

[Defense counsel]: That — that — that — yes. I just thought he said a felony warrant. I don't believe there was one.

THE COURT: Your client thought there was a warrant and that's why he ran.

[Defense counsel]: Yes, yes, yes. I'm not disputing that.

After these statements by the prosecutor and defense counsel, the court asked Huntley if he was pleading guilty "because you did as [the prosecutor] stated in the factual basis and your attorney?" Huntley answered affirmatively. The court found that there was a factual basis for Huntley's three guilty pleas and that the pleas were made voluntarily with an understanding of his rights. The court scheduled a sentencing hearing for August 6, 2004.

Huntley failed to appear for sentencing, and a capias warrant was issued for his arrest. After he was back in custody, the sentencing hearing was held on October 29, 2004. Defense counsel asked the court to set aside Huntley's guilty pleas because: (1) Huntley did not think he was guilty as charged; (2) he was intimidated by the courtroom; and (3) he was under the influence of controlled substances when he entered his plea. Huntley was permitted to directly elaborate on these assertions:

Your Honor, I was just — I was real paranoid that day. I remember you asking me that stuff. When I left, my girlfriend even told me, I don't think that judge wanted you to take that. But she's like — you know, he can't tell you not to do it.

You know, I don't feel I'm guilty as charged, you know. I think it's — it's overcharged for — for what I did. You know, I've read up on the law and stuff like that. And, you know, I — I feel that I was guilty of trespassing, not — I had no intention of committing a crime when I went in any of these places, you know. I was under the influence of drugs right then of methamphetamine. And I was — I was afraid the police was [sic] going to shoot me, because prior to that I was on a high speed chase. . . . I need help for my — my drug addiction, you know. . . . Your Honor, I don't feel that I'm guilty, you know, as — as seriously as that they're trying to give me, you know. The law books say that, you know, what I'm guilty of is, the way I read it, sir, is that if [sic] first degree, I state, a misdemeanor of trespassing. . . . It would carry a year in the county jail. And a year in the county jail and 12 years, that's quite a bit of difference, Your Honor.

The judge declined to allow Huntley to withdraw his guilty pleas because he pled guilty after "a long discussion of the facts and what occurred," and the court would not have accepted the pleas absent a factual basis. Huntley was sentenced to serve three concurrent 12-year terms of imprisonment.

Thereafter, Huntley filed a timely pro se motion seeking post-conviction relief pursuant to Rule 24.035. After counsel was...