Sena v. State

• Decision Date: 17 August 2022
• Docket Number: S-21-0082, S-21-0083, S-21-0279
• Citation: 515 P.3d 599
• Parties: Joseph SENA, Appellant (Defendant), v. The STATE of Wyoming, Appellee (Plaintiff).
• Court: Wyoming Supreme Court

515 P.3d 599

Joseph SENA, Appellant (Defendant),
v.
The STATE of Wyoming, Appellee (Plaintiff).

S-21-0082, S-21-0083, S-21-0279

Supreme Court of Wyoming.

August 17, 2022

Representing Appellant: Office of the Public Defender: Diane M. Lozano, State Public Defender; Kirk A. Morgan, Chief Appellate Counsel; Robin S. Cooper, Senior Assistant Appellate Counsel.

Representing Appellee: Bridget L. Hill, Attorney General; Jenny L. Craig, Deputy Attorney General; Joshua C. Eames^* , Senior Assistant Attorney General; Catherine M. Mercer, Assistant Attorney General.

Before FOX, C.J., and KAUTZ, BOOMGAARDEN, GRAY, and FENN, JJ.

FENN, Justice.

515 P.3d 601

[¶1] Joseph Sena challenges the district court's decision denying his post-sentence motions to withdraw his no contest pleas in two separate dockets, Docket Nos. 34-682 and 34-683. In Docket No. 34-682, he was charged with one count of burglary. In Docket No. 34-683, he was charged with one count of attempted murder in the first degree and one count of aggravated assault. Pursuant to a global plea agreement, Mr. Sena entered a plea of no contest to attempted voluntary manslaughter and burglary. The State subsequently dismissed the charge of aggravated assault and jointly recommended a sentence. On appeal, Mr. Sena challenges the State's comments at sentencing concerning the availability of its witnesses. We affirm.

ISSUES

¶2] We state the issue as follows:

I. Did the district court abuse its discretion when it denied Mr. Sena's motions to withdraw his no contest pleas?

FACTS

[¶3] Joseph Sena pled no contest to charges in two separate dockets, Docket No. 34-682 and 34-683.¹ In Docket No. 34-682, Mr. Sena pled no contest to one count of burglary for acts he committed on October 8, 2017. In Docket No. 34-683, he pled no contest to one count of attempted voluntary manslaughter for acts he committed on January 17, 2019. For both dockets, Mr. Sena agreed the district court could rely on the affidavits of probable cause to provide a factual basis for his pleas.²

[¶4] In Docket No. 34-682, the State charged Mr. Sena with one count of burglary. According to the Affidavit of Probable Cause, the Cheyenne Police Department received a report of a home invasion burglary on October 8, 2017. It was reported that the owner and her two children arrived home and heard a loud banging on the front door. The owner stated there was a louder bang and three males entered her residence. One of the men claimed to have a gun and asked for "Travis." The owner responded that she did not know Travis and threatened to kill the men. The men left with items from inside the home. The owner reported her purse was taken from her bedroom and two decorative knives were missing from her living room wall. The children found her purse a short distance away and the three men were seen leaving in a silver sedan near where the purse was located.

[¶5] The owner witnessed one of the men holding the glass pane from her screen door. Investigating officers seized the glass pane and submitted it to the Wyoming State Crime Laboratory for forensic analysis. The State Crime Lab found 15 latent prints and identified prints belonging to the owner and Mr. Sena.

[¶6] In Docket No. 34-683, the State charged Mr. Sena with two counts: Count 1) attempted murder in the first degree; and Count 2) aggravated assault. According to the Affidavit of Probable Cause, on January 17, 2019, the Cheyenne Police Department received a report of a stabbing, and officers were dispatched to the scene. At the scene, officers contacted the victim and his girlfriend. The officers observed multiple stab wounds and cuts on the victim's body and had him transported to the hospital. Officers interviewed the victim's girlfriend. She reported seeing a gold-colored car in the alley when she and the victim pulled into the driveway. She stated the gold-colored car pulled out of the alley, drove past her residence, turned around, and parked in the street. She stated two men exited the vehicle

[515 P.3d 602

and approached the victim and began stabbing him. She identified Mr. Sena and Isaac Garcia as the suspects. At the hospital, the victim also identified Mr. Sena and Isaac Garcia as the men who attacked and stabbed him.

¶7] A relative of the next-door neighbor witnessed the attack and spoke with officers at the scene. Officers were later able to obtain video surveillance from the neighbors’ house. The video captured the attack.

[¶8] On July 28, 2020, Mr. Sena entered into a global plea agreement pursuant to Rule 11(e)(1)(B) of the Wyoming Rules of Criminal Procedure ("W.R.Cr.P"). In Docket No. 34-683, Mr. Sena agreed to plead guilty to an amended charge of attempted voluntary manslaughter in exchange for the State dismissing the aggravated assault charge. The State further agreed to recommend a sentence of not less than ten nor more than twelve years of incarceration to run concurrently with the burglary and a separate probation revocation. In Docket No. 34-682, Mr. Sena agreed to plead guilty to burglary in exchange for the State recommending a sentence of not less than three nor more than five years of incarceration to run concurrently with the attempted voluntary manslaughter and his probation revocation.

[¶9] At the change of plea hearing held on July 30, 2020, defense counsel stated Mr. Sena requested to plead no contest to the charges instead of guilty. The State agreed to the no contest pleas and later filed an amended plea agreement to reflect the change. Mr. Sena entered no contest pleas to burglary and attempted voluntary manslaughter.

[¶10] Four months later, the district court held a sentencing hearing on November 18, 2020. In support of the plea agreement, the State discussed problems with witness cooperation. It argued under the circumstances it was best to take Mr. Sena out of the community for ten to twelve years, "given the issues [it] had with witnesses who were simply afraid to testify." Defense counsel took issue with the State's argument and claimed the State was "flagrantly violating the spirit of the plea agreement by attacking [Mr. Sena] as some type of dangerous individual and all but inviting the Court to impose a sentence greater than that agreed to by the State." The State reiterated that it believed the plea agreement was appropriate and stated its comments "made a record that [the State has] issues with the witnesses ... that make it appropriate to impose" the agreed-upon sentence. The State also clarified its comments by stating it "made the record of [its] discussions with law enforcement ... regarding the plea agreement."

[¶11] The district court accepted the plea agreement and sentenced Mr. Sena to three to five years for the burglary charge in Docket No. 34-682 to run concurrently with Docket No. 34-683 and a probation revocation. The district court sentenced Mr. Sena to a period of ten to twelve years for the attempted voluntary manslaughter charge in Docket No. 34-683 to run concurrently with Docket No. 34-682 and the probation revocation.

[¶12] Almost a month after the sentence was imposed, Mr. Sena filed a motion to allow substitution of counsel in both dockets. He also filed motions requesting to withdraw his pleas of no contest. Mr. Sena contended the State admitted at the sentencing hearing that it withheld information about the availability of witnesses in order to induce him to enter into the plea agreement. He further contended his previous defense counsel was ineffective because he did not investigate the availability of the State's witnesses.

[¶13] At the motions to withdraw hearing held on January 11, 2021, defense counsel did not introduce any evidence and instead presented argument consistent with the written motions to withdraw. In an oral ruling,³ the district court denied Mr. Sena's motions to withdraw and found Mr. Sena did not demonstrate any necessity to correct a manifest injustice. Mr. Sena timely filed a notice of appeal in both dockets.

[515 P.3d 603

[¶14] On May 28, 2021, Mr. Sena filed a...