People v. Collins, A069178

• Decision Date: 21 May 1996
• Docket Number: No. A069178,A069178
• Citation: 45 Cal.App.4th 849,53 Cal.Rptr.2d 367
• Court: California Court of Appeals Court of Appeals
• Parties: , 96 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 3650, 96 Daily Journal D.A.R. 5876 The PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. Terrell COLLINS, Defendant and Appellant.

Page 367

53 Cal.Rptr.2d 367

45 Cal.App.4th 849, 96 Cal. Daily Op. Serv. 3650,

96 Daily Journal D.A.R. 5876

The PEOPLE, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. Terrell COLLINS, Defendant and Appellant.

No. A069178.

Court of Appeal, First District, Division 2, California.

May 21, 1996.

Rehearing Denied June 13, 1996.

Review Denied Sept. 4, 1996.

Janice M. Brickley, Piedmont, CA, for appellant Terrell Collins.

Daniel E. Lungren, California Attorney General, George Williamson, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Ronald A. Bass, Senior Assistant Attorney General, Catherine A. Rivlin, Supervising Deputy Attorney General Christina V. Kuo, Deputy Attorney General, Office of the Attorney General, San Francisco, CA, for the People.

HAERLE, Associate Justice.

I. INTRODUCTION

This novel case arises out of the post-sentencing revocation of defendant's initial plea bargain agreement and his commitment to the California Youth Authority in accordance with that agreement. We are called upon to decide whether: (1) the trial court had jurisdiction to rule upon the District Attorney's motion to revoke defendant's plea bargain agreement and conforming sentence; (2) the District Attorney waived his right to nullify the plea bargain agreement; (3) statements made by the defendant pursuant to the plea bargain agreement were properly admitted during the hearing on the District Attorney's revocation motion; and (4) initial trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance to defendant. Upon considering these issues, we reject defendant's claims and affirm the judgment.

II. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

A. May-August 1992: Defendant is Charged with Martin's Murder

Drew Martin's body was found inside his apartment on May 23, 1992. Martin's head was bound with cloth and tape, and the apparent cause of death was blunt trauma and asphyxiation. A baseball bat and a jammed rifle were found near the body and a fannypack belonging to Martin was found outside an open window. Several residents of the complex reported seeing one or two black males at or near Martin's apartment the previous Wednesday or Thursday, one of whom loaded property into and drove away in Martin's car.

Witnesses identified Christopher Johnson (Johnson) as one of the two people who entered Martin's apartment and as the person who loaded and drove Martin's car. One witness identified defendant as someone who was standing on Martin's balcony either that Wednesday or Thursday.

Johnson was arrested on June 2, 1992, and denied any involvement in the offense.

On July 14, 1992, while defendant was in custody on an unrelated charge, Detective William Thompson (Thompson) attempted to question defendant regarding the Martin homicide. Defendant, however, asserted his Miranda ¹ rights and did not give a statement.

Thompson interviewed Denise Coretjer (Coretjer), defendant's cousin, on August 5, 1992. She told him that defendant was present when Johnson killed Martin, but that defendant did not participate in the murder.

A petition, pursuant to Welfare and Institutions Code section 602, was filed against defendant on August 7, 1992. ² The petition alleged the following counts relating to the Martin homicide: one count of murder (Pen.Code, § 187, subd. (a) ³) with special circumstances of robbery (§ 190.2, subd. (a)(17)(i)) and torture (§ 190.2, subd. (a)(18)), one count of robbery of an inhabited dwelling (§ 212.5, subd. (a)), and one count of torture (§ 206).

B. September 1992: Defendant and the Prosecution Explore the Possibility of a Plea Bargain

Assistant District Attorney Jack Grandsaert (Grandsaert) and defendant's first attorney, Peter Goldscheider (Goldscheider), entered into a letter agreement on September 11, 1992, whereby defendant agreed to speak with the prosecution regarding Martin's murder, in order "to assess the credibility and value of the evidence and possible testimony" that defendant might be able to provide and to assist the prosecution "in determining what, if any, offer [it] would be willing to make" to defendant. Goldscheider told defendant that Grandsaert wanted to see what type of witness defendant would make and to satisfy himself that defendant was not more involved in the crime than had been represented. Goldscheider also advised defendant that he had a good chance of being found unfit for juvenile court and thus would be facing life without the possibility of parole if convicted of the murder.

Pursuant to this letter agreement, Grandsaert interviewed the defendant on September 14, 15 and 16, 1992. During these interviews defendant said that he went to Martin's house with Johnson to get some marijuana. While there, Johnson unexpectedly hit Martin on the head with a baseball bat rendering him unconscious. Johnson then bound Martin with tape and a pillowcase, dragged him to the back room, beat him with a baseball bat and choked him with a wire. Defendant denied taking part in the assault, other than checking to see if Martin was dead and watching Martin's unconscious body as Johnson carried property out to the car. Defendant fled through a window and walked up a hill to a street, where he encountered Johnson, who ordered him to get into Martin's truck. When they arrived at Coretjer's apartment, Johnson carried the stolen property into the apartment. Defendant told Coretjer what had happened while the two of them were alone.

Following these statements, defendant took and passed a polygraph examination.

Although defendant added more self-incriminating detail to his story at each of the three interviews, ⁴ the prosecution agreed to enter into a plea agreement with him.

C. October 1992: Defendant Enters Into A Plea Bargain Agreement

A formal plea bargain agreement between defendant and the District Attorney was executed on October 16, 1992. (A copy of the plea bargain agreement is attached as Appendix A.) Defendant agreed to cooperate with law enforcement and the prosecution in the investigation and prosecution of the murder of Martin, including providing truthful and complete statements and testimony concerning the actions and criminal offenses of all persons involved in the murder, including himself. In exchange, the District Attorney agreed to reduce the charges against defendant to a single count of accessory after the fact (§ 32) and to agree to a juvenile commitment to the California Youth Authority (CYA).

The agreement expressly stated that defendant's CYA commitment was conditional upon his continuing performance of "all of the terms of the Agreement" and provided that, if he testified untruthfully, the "entire Agreement is null and void." The effects of nullification of the agreement were then spelled out as follows: "(1) That the Minor [defendant] will be deemed to have withdrawn his admission of guilt, (2) The original charge will be automatically reinstated with no limitation on possible sentence or degree of murder, (3) The Minor will be returned to San Mateo County to face prosecution on the original charge, and, (4) The District Attorney's Office will be free to seek a finding of unfitness against the Minor."

The agreement was signed by defendant, Goldscheider and Grandsaert. In response to the trial court's inquiries, defendant stated that he understood all of the terms of the agreement. The trial court accepted the agreement and committed to sentence defendant to a maximum of five years in CYA in accordance with its terms.

Pursuant to the agreement, defendant testified for the prosecution at the preliminary hearing in Johnson's case. His testimony was consistent with his September statements.

At his dispositional hearing, defendant requested immediate sentencing, rather than continuing the hearing until after the Johnson case concluded. Goldscheider noted that the polygraph test supported defendant's claim "he didn't play any active role in the incident." Grandsaert stated that, since defendant had apparently testified truthfully at the preliminary hearing, he had "complied" with the plea bargain to date. Grandsaert argued that, although defendant was present during the crime, he was only involved as an accessory. Pursuant to the agreement, the trial court declared defendant a ward of the court and ordered him committed to CYA for the recommended term of five years.

D. March-April 1993: Defendant Talks to Thompson

On March 30, 1993, ⁵ Thompson learned that Coretjer had told an investigator for the District Attorney's office that defendant had lied to the police and that he had admitted to kicking Martin in the groin during the fatal attack. Based on this new information, Grandsaert requested that Thompson again interview defendant. Grandsaert telephoned Goldscheider to describe the new information and to inform him of Thompson's pending interview.

Thompson interviewed defendant at CYA on April 1. During this interview, defendant admitted that he had lied at the preliminary hearing and all the prior interviews. Defendant told Thompson that he and Coretjer had fabricated his story, that defendant and Johnson had gone to the apartment to commit a burglary, that he stayed during the attack on Martin in order to complete the robbery, that Marc Dailey was at Coretjer's house when defendant and Johnson returned from Martin's apartment, and that he had carried property into Coretjer's apartment.

Grandsaert spoke with Thompson after the interview. Grandsaert then contacted Goldscheider. Grandsaert told him about defendant's admissions and stated that he had not decided what he was going to do about the status of the plea bargain. He stated that, at a minimum, defendant would have to serve some additional time for perjury in order to remain a viable witness. At no time did Goldscheider object to the interview.

Based on the information received from Coretjer and defendant, Marc Dailey was arrested on charges of being an accessory after the fact, interviewed by Thompson, and granted immunity.

E. April 1993: Defendant Talks to an...