State v. Collins, No. SC 90839.

CourtUnited States State Supreme Court of Missouri
Writing for the CourtPER CURIAM
Citation328 S.W.3d 705
PartiesSTATE of Missouri, Respondent, v. Faron Ross COLLINS, Appellant.
Decision Date11 January 2011
Docket NumberNo. SC 90839.
328 S.W.3d 705

STATE of Missouri, Respondent,
v.
Faron Ross COLLINS, Appellant.


No. SC 90839.

Supreme Court of Missouri,
En Banc.


Jan. 11, 2011.

328 S.W.3d 706

Craig A. Johnston, Public Defender's Office, Columbia, for Collins.

James B. Farnsworth, Attorney General's Office, Jefferson City, for the State.

PER CURIAM.

Faron Ross Collins appeals his conviction for driving while intoxicated (DWI), section 577.010,1 following a bench trial in the Circuit Court of Douglas County. Mr. Collins was sentenced as a chronic DWI offender under section 577.023.1(2) to a five-year prison sentence, concurrent with a one-year sentence for driving while suspended (DWS). The state concedes that the trial court erred in finding that Mr. Collins was a chronic DWI offender because the state's evidence was silent about whether Mr. Collins had been represented by counsel or waived counsel in the cases in which he previously was convicted. The sole issue on appeal is the appropriate remedy for this error. Under section 577.023.9, because the state did not prove any prior convictions or pleas of guilty, the appropriate remedy is vacation of Mr. Collins's sentence and remand for re-sentencing on the class B misdemeanor of DWI.

Factual and Procedural Background

Mr. Collins does not challenge the sufficiency of the evidence to prove that he was guilty of DWI. Rather, he challenges the

328 S.W.3d 707
sufficiency of the evidence offered to prove that he is a chronic DWI offender, as defined in section 577.023.1(2). Therefore, only the facts dispositive to the issue on appeal will be discussed.

In the light most favorable to the judgment, the evidence shows that on September 3, 2006, Mr. Collins was arrested for DWI. He was charged subsequently with one count of DWI as a chronic offender, under sections 577.010 and 577.023, and one count of DWS, under section 302.321. Mr. Collins pleaded guilty to DWS and, after a September 25, 2008 bench trial, he was found guilty of DWI.

During the state's presentation of evidence at trial, it offered a certified copy of Mr. Collins's driving record as evidence of his prior convictions to prove that Mr. Collins was a chronic DWI offender under section 577.023.1(2)(a). The exhibit reflected eight prior convictions for DWI or driving with excessive blood-alcohol content. The exhibit did not specify if Mr. Collins was represented by counsel or waived counsel during any of the proceedings in which he was convicted. Mr. Collins did not object to the exhibit or argue to the trial court that the evidence was insufficient to prove that he was a chronic offender.

After hearing the evidence and Mr. Collins's argument that the state failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he was driving in an intoxicated condition, the trial court found that Mr. Collins was guilty of DWI and that he was a chronic offender. On December 2, 2008, the trial court sentenced him to five years in prison, which was the minimum sentence for a class B felony. 2 The trial court also sentenced Mr. Collins to one year in the county jail for the DWS, to run concurrently with the five-year sentence for DWI.

Mr. Collins appealed. After opinion by the court of appeals, this Court granted transfer.3 Mo. Const. art. V, sec. 10.

Standard of Review

Because Mr. Collins failed to object to the trial court's finding that he was a chronic driving-while-intoxicated offender, his claim of error was not preserved. A claim that a defendant failed to preserve can be reviewed only for plain error. State v. Severe, 307 S.W.3d 640, 642 (Mo. banc 2010). Rule 30.20 allows an appellate court to conduct plain error review "when the court finds that manifest injustice or miscarriage of justice has resulted" from the trial court error. When a defendant is sentenced to a term of punishment greater than the maximum sentence for the offense, the sentencing error constitutes a manifest injustice warranting plain error review. Severe, 307 S.W.3d at 642.

Analysis

At the time of Mr. Collins's conviction, section 577.023 required the state to prove that Mr. Collins was represented or waived representation during the proceedings for his prior convictions to find Mr. Collins was a chronic offender. That version

328 S.W.3d 708
of section 577.023.1(2)(a) defines a chronic offender as "a person who has pleaded guilty to or has been found guilty of four or more intoxication-related traffic offenses[.]" It also provides that an "intoxicated-related traffic offense" includes "driving while intoxicated ... or driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs in violation of state law or a county or municipal ordinance, where the defendant was represented by or waived the right to an attorney in writing." Section 577.023.1(3). Under the statute, for a defendant to be convicted as a chronic offender, (1) the information or indictment must plead all essential facts warranting such a finding, section 577.023.7(1); (2) evidence must establish "sufficient facts pleaded" to warrant a finding beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant is a chronic offender, section 577.023.7(2); (3) the court must make findings of fact that warrant such a finding beyond a reasonable doubt, section 577.023.7(3); and, (4) in a court-tried case, the presentation of evidence and court findings must be done prior to sentencing. Section 577.023.9.

The state concedes there was no evidence at trial...

To continue reading

Request your trial
16 practice notes
  • Juvenile Officer v. J.L.H. (In re Interest of J.L.H.), WD 77850
    • United States
    • Court of Appeal of Missouri (US)
    • March 8, 2016
    ...the statute provisions which do not appear in explicit words or by implication from othe[r] words in the statute.’ ” State v. Collins, 328 S.W.3d 705, 709 n. 6 (Mo. banc 2011). Courts “cannot supply what the legislature has omitted from controlling statutes”; instead, we “enforce[ ] statute......
  • v. J.L.H., WD77850
    • United States
    • Missouri Court of Appeals
    • March 8, 2016
    ...upon the statute provisions which do not appear in explicit words or by implication from othe[r] words in the statute." State v. Collins, 328 S.W.3d 705, 709 n.6 (Mo. banc 2011). Courts "cannot supply what the legislature has omitted from controlling statutes"; instead, we "enforce[ ] statu......
  • State v. Johnson, No. SC 95481.
    • United States
    • United States State Supreme Court of Missouri
    • August 22, 2017
    ...472, 479 (Mo. banc 2013) (internal quotations omitted). This Court may not add language to an unambiguous statute. State v. Collins , 328 S.W.3d 705, 709 n.6 (Mo. banc 2011). "This Court must presume every word, sentence or clause in a statute has effect, and the legislature did not insert ......
  • City of Joplin v. Klein, No. SD 30716.
    • United States
    • Court of Appeal of Missouri (US)
    • July 21, 2011
    ...double jeopardy is not applicable to a noncapital proceeding to assess punishment.” Id. at 537. However, in light of State v. Collins, 328 S.W.3d 705 (Mo. banc 2011), the City may not be afforded a second bite of the proverbial apple to present new evidence prior to a re-sentencing hearing.......
  • Request a trial to view additional results
29 cases
  • Juvenile Officer v. J.L.H. (In re Interest of J.L.H.), WD 77850
    • United States
    • Court of Appeal of Missouri (US)
    • March 8, 2016
    ...the statute provisions which do not appear in explicit words or by implication from othe[r] words in the statute.’ ” State v. Collins, 328 S.W.3d 705, 709 n. 6 (Mo. banc 2011). Courts “cannot supply what the legislature has omitted from controlling statutes”; instead, we “enforce[ ] statute......
  • v. J.L.H., WD77850
    • United States
    • Court of Appeal of Missouri (US)
    • March 8, 2016
    ...upon the statute provisions which do not appear in explicit words or by implication from othe[r] words in the statute." State v. Collins, 328 S.W.3d 705, 709 n.6 (Mo. banc 2011). Courts "cannot supply what the legislature has omitted from controlling statutes"; instead, we "enforce[ ] statu......
  • v. J.L.H., WD77850
    • United States
    • Court of Appeal of Missouri (US)
    • March 8, 2016
    ...upon the statute provisions which do not appear in explicit words or by implication from othe[r] words in the statute." State v. Collins, 328 S.W.3d 705, 709 n.6 (Mo. banc 2011). Courts "cannot supply what the legislature has omitted from controlling statutes"; instead, we "enforce[ ] statu......
  • State v. Williams, SC 96478
    • United States
    • United States State Supreme Court of Missouri
    • May 1, 2018
    ...to impose requirements not included in the amendment, either in its express language or by necessary implication. See State v. Collins , 328 S.W.3d 705, 709 n.6 (Mo. banc 2011) ("This Court may not engraft upon [a] statute provisions which do not appear in explicit words or by implication."......
  • Request a trial to view additional results

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT