Smallwood v. State, 87-190
Decision Date | 27 January 1988 |
Docket Number | No. 87-190,87-190 |
Citation | 748 P.2d 1141 |
Parties | Paul Douglas SMALLWOOD, Appellant (Defendant), v. The STATE of Wyoming, Appellee (Plaintiff). |
Court | Wyoming Supreme Court |
Julie D. Naylor, Appellate Counsel, Wyoming Public Defender Program, for appellant.
Joseph B. Meyer, Atty. Gen., Sylvia Lee Hackl, Sr. Asst. Atty. Gen., Thomas A. Roan, Student Intern, for appellee.
Before BROWN, C.J., and THOMAS, CARDINE, URBIGKIT and MACY, JJ.
This criminal appeal challenges appellant's conviction and sentencing pursuant to guilty pleas entered to two charges, felony child abuse, § 6-2-503(a), W.S.1977, 1983 Replacement, and battery, § 6-2-501, W.S.1977, 1983 Replacement.
Appellant raises two issues on appeal:
We reverse and remand by a dispositive determination of the first issue, and consequently do not address the abuse-of-discretion issue.
On October 20, 1986, appellant Paul Smallwood was charged with seven counts, including two counts of battery in violation of § 6-2-501, W.S.1977, 1983 Replacement; two counts of incest in violation of § 6-4-402(a), W.S.1977, 1987 Cum.Supp.; two counts of taking indecent liberties with a child in violation of § 14-3-105, W.S.1977, 1986 Replacement; and one count of felony child abuse in violation of § 6-2-503(a), W.S.1977, 1983 Replacement. Smallwood initially pled not guilty to all counts at his arraignment on December 17, 1986, at which time he was informed, among other things, of the possible minimum and maximum sentences for each count. At a change-of-plea hearing on April 27, 1987, Smallwood entered guilty pleas to the count of felony child abuse, and to one count of battery, and the remaining counts were dismissed.
At the change-of-plea hearing, the dialogue included:
The court proceeded to explain some of the constitutional and civil rights that he would waive by his plea, including that after pleading guilty he would be examined under oath.
The court continued inquiry to obtain a factual basis, accepted the guilty plea, and ordered a presentence report and psychological evaluation. At no time during this hearing was Smallwood again advised of the maximum possible sentences under the statutes.
Judgment was entered on the pleas, and after the presentence report and psychological evaluation were completed, a sentencing hearing was held on June 17, 1987. Smallwood was sentenced to a term of six months on the battery charge, and to a penitentiary term of not less than four nor more than five years on the child abuse charge, with sentences to run concurrently and credit given for 235 days of presentence confinement. This appeal is taken from that judgment and sentence. 1
Rule 15(c), W.R.Cr.P., provides "(c) Advice to Defendant.--Before accepting a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, the court must address the defendant personally in open court and inform him of, and determine that he understands, the following:
"(1) The nature of the charge to which the plea is offered, the mandatory minimum penalty provided by law, if any, and the maximum penalty provided by law; * * *." (Emphasis added.)
The frequently reiterated purpose of Rule 15, W.R.Cr.P. is to allow the judge to determine whether the defendant entered the plea voluntarily and with an understanding of the consequences of the plea. Keller v. State, Wyo., 723 P.2d 1244 (1986); Hoggatt v. State, Wyo., 606 P.2d 718 (1980); Cardenas v. Meacham, Wyo., 545 P.2d 632 (1976). In Crawford v. State, Wyo., 701 P.2d 1150 (1985), which is the controlling case, we have held that strict compliance with the rule is mandatory.
In Cardenas v. Meacham, supra; Keller v. State, supra; and most recently in Crawford v. State, supra, we restated that the record must affirmatively show that the judge personally informed the defendant of the maximum possible penalty in order to comply with Rule 15(c). The effect of noncompliance with that rule was discussed in Hoggatt v. State, supra, 606 P.2d at 724-725:
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Smallwood v. State
...considering dismissed sexual abuse charges in imposing sentence. This criminal appeal was previously before us in Smallwood v. State, 748 P.2d 1141 (Wyo.1988) [Smallwood I ], where we reversed the conviction and remanded to the district court because that court had erroneously accepted a gu......
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Osborn v. State, 90-178
...basis for the plea and that the defendant knows the range of the penalties for the crime with which the person is charged. Smallwood v. State, 748 P.2d 1141 (Wyo.1988); Hoggatt v. State, 606 P.2d 718 (Wyo.1980); Cardenas v. Meacham, 545 P.2d 632 (Wyo.1976). All of this occurred not once but......
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Mehring v. State, 92-114
...violated the rule of strict compliance announced in Crawford v. State, 701 P.2d 1150, 1153 (Wyo.1985). See also Smallwood v. State, 748 P.2d 1141, 1143 (Wyo.1988). At the outset of the change of plea hearing, the trial court informed Mehring that before accepting his plea, the trial court w......
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...determine whether the defendant entered the plea voluntarily and with an understanding of the consequences of the plea. Smallwood v. State, 748 P.2d 1141, 1143 (Wyo.1988). This court looks to the totality of the circumstances to determine the voluntariness of a plea. Reyna v. State, 2001 WY......