In The Interest Of: M.M., A Minor.

• Decision Date: 31 August 2010
• Docket Number: No. ED 93857.,ED 93857.
• Parties: In the Interest of: M.M., a minor.
• Court: Missouri Court of Appeals

320 S.W.3d 191

In the Interest of: M.M., a minor.

No. ED 93857.

Missouri Court of Appeals,
Eastern District,
Division Five.

Aug. 31, 2010.

320 S.W.3d 192

Patricia Harrison, St. Louis, MO, for Appellant.

Sakina Yasmine Ahmad, St. Louis, MO, for Respondent. OPINION MARY K. HOFF, Judge.

M.M., a juvenile, appeals from the Order denying the Motion to Vacate the Order and Judgment of Jurisdiction entered pursuant to Section 211.031.1(3), RSMo 2000,¹ adjudicating M.M. of the delinquency offense of Tampering in the First Degree, in violation of Section 569.080. M.M. argues the court erred in denying the motion because: (1) she did not voluntarily, intelligently, or knowingly waive her right to counsel; and (2) there was no factual basis for her guilty plea. We reverse and remand.

Factual and Procedural Background

On May 16, 2009, M.M. was charged by petition with the delinquency offense of Tampering in the First Degree pursuant to Section 569.080.1(2). A detention hearing was held on May 20, 2009, and an attorney with the Public Defender's Office entered her appearance on behalf of M.M. The matter was set for an adjudication hearing on June 23, 2009. M.M. was released to the custody of her mother with specific conditions including participating in the home detention program and was advised that any violation of the rules may result in her placement in detention. At that time, the family believed an attorney from the Public Defender's Office would be representing their daughter, M.M.

Days before trial, M.M.'s mother received a letter from the Public Defender advising she would seek to withdraw in M.M.'s case as the family did not meet the indigency standards. Just prior to trial, the Deputy Juvenile Officer made a home visit to the family. The mother advised of her need for a continuance due to the

320 S.W.3d 193

letter from the public defender's office. The Deputy Juvenile Officer informed mother that if she requested a continuance, he would ask that M.M. be detained for various home detention violations. No specific violation reports were filed prior to that meeting or thereafter.

On the day of trial, the court announced it had a motion from the Public Defender's Office to withdraw from the case. M.M.'s mother stated that she was aware of the request. The court explained the Attorney for the Juvenile Officer was ready to proceed and wanted to know whether the family would like time to consult with a private attorney. M.M.'s mother stated, “We'd like to consult with an attorney, because we-.” The court replied, “Do you know how much time-And I don't have a lot of time that I can extend in terms of continuing this case.” M.M.'s mother requested a few weeks to a month. The Attorney for the Juvenile Officer indicated July 19, 2009, was the next possible date for her witnesses to be available for trial. She then requested that M.M. be detained during the continuance due to six alleged home detention violations. No specific information was given concerning these allegations and M.M.'s mother stated, “I don't understand this.” M.M. and her mother then attempted to explain the alleged violations.

The court discussed whether M.M. should be detained in light of the alleged violations or whether an electronic monitor was available pending trial. The Deputy Juvenile Officer stated that no GPS systems were available but was not sure on the availability of the electronic monitor. The court took a recess and asked the Deputy Juvenile Officer to look into the availability of an electronic monitor or else it would have the child detained for the entirety of the continuance lasting until July 20 or 21, 2009.

Immediately after the recess, the court confirmed with M.M.'s mother that she had the option of entering a plea of guilty and offering an explanation during which the court would ask questions about the incident precipitating the charge. The court advised that once M.M. pled and the court proceeded with questioning, she could not then withdraw her plea and request to do something else. M.M. and her mother then agreed that she would enter a plea and proceed with the court's examination. The court inquired, “And you're not represented today? You're not-You don't have an attorney appearing with you today?” M.M. responded, “No, ma'am.” The court then reiterated, “But ... you would like to proceed in this case?” M.M. confirmed that she did and the court proceeded to inquire into whether she was pleading guilty to the offense of tampering in the first degree on May 15, 2009, as alleged in the petition.

At this point, M.M. was sworn in and the court proceeded with the guilty plea. The court inquired about the recommendation of the Deputy Juvenile Officer, to which he responded “[o]fficial court supervision.” The court confirmed that M.M. understood this recommendation. The court established that M.M. was not under the influence of any drugs, medication, or alcohol and that nothing was impairing her ability to understand the proceedings. The court then discussed with M.M. the understanding of her rights, asking whether she discussed her plea of guilty with her mother, to which she responded that she had. The court inquired into whether she understood that she did not have to plead guilty in this case, and that she could instead go to trial, “[a]nd understand that if you have a trial, I'd have a trial proceeding before me, the [A]ttorney for the Juvenile Officer, ... would have to present her case and her evidence. You would then have an

320 S.W.3d 194

opportunity to present an explanation or a defense. But rather than do that, you want to admit that this-that this offense is what happened?” M.M. responded, “Yes, ma'am.” The Attorney for the Juvenile Officer then explained what she would have proven at trial:

the State would have proved, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the juvenile committed the offense of tampering in the first degree, which is a Class C felony, in that on or about May 15, 2009, in the City of St. Louis, State of Missouri, at approximately 8:30 in the evening in the 1500 block of Cochran Place, the juvenile, knowingly and without the consent of the owner, unlawfully operated a motor vehicle. That was a 2004 Chrysler Sebring.

When asked by the court if she was admitting to this offense as described by the Attorney for the Juvenile Officer, M.M. responded, “Yes, ma'am.” The court then asked M.M. to explain what happened in her own words. M.M. proceeded to relate the events that resulted in her arrest adding that she had permission from her friend to drive the car but only later realized the friend did not have permission to operate the vehicle. Following this...