State v. Rodriguez
| Decision Date | 25 September 1975 |
| Docket Number | No. 3108--PR,3108--PR |
| Citation | 112 Ariz. 193,540 P.2d 665 |
| Parties | The STATE of Arizona, Appellee, v. Joseph Rivera RODRIGUEZ, Appellant. |
| Court | Arizona Supreme Court |
N. Warner Lee, Former Atty. Gen., Bruce E. Babbitt, Atty. Gen. by Stanley L. Patchell, Asst. Atty. Gen., Phoenix, for appellee.
Ross P. Lee, Maricopa County Public Defender by Anne Kappes, Deputy Public Defender, Phoenix, for appellant.
We accepted this petition for review for the limited purpose of determining the disposition on appeal of a guilty plea in which it does not appear that the trial court made a proper fact determination of the basis of the plea of guilty as required by Rule 17.3 of the Arizona Rules of Criminal Procedure 1973, but in the extended record on appeal it does show a factual basis for the plea.
The facts necessary for a determination of this matter on appeal are as follows. On 20 February 1974, a complaint was sworn to in Glendale Precinct Justice Court charging that defendant, appellant here, possessed a narcotic drug, heroin. On 27 February appellant signed a 'waiver of preliminary hearing with plea agreement' form in which he agreed to plead guilty to the charge. On 5 March 1974, an information was filed in the Superior Court of Maricopa County charging him with possession of heroin and on 7 March he entered a plea of not guilty. On 20 March 1974 he entered his plea of guilty and was examined by the court. Appellant was sentenced to serve a term of not less than two nor more than five years in the Arizona State Prison.
When, on 20 March 1974, appellant entered his plea of guilty the trial court made the following inquiry concerning the factual basis of the plea:
'THE COURT: It is charged on or about the 13th day of February, 1974, in the County of Maricopa, State of Arizona, you unlawfully possessed a narcotic drug, to-wit, heroin.
Is that the charge as you understand it and the charge to which you wish to plead guilty?
'THE DEFENDANT: Yes, sir.'
Rule 17.3 reads as follows:
'Before accepting a plea of guilty or no contest, the court shall address the defendant personally in open court and determine that he wishes to forego the constitutional rights of which he has been advised, that his plea is voluntary and not the result of force, threats or promises (other than a plea agreement) and that there is a factual basis for the plea.'
The Court of Appeals in its decision and opinion held that this did not comply with Rule 17.3 and set aside the plea and directed the trial court to take a new plea. We agree with the Court of Appeals that this does not comply with the factual basis as required by Rule 17.3 of the Arizona Rules of Criminal Procedure 1973. The record, however, indicates in the presentence report the following statement:
'DEFENDANT'S STATEMENT:
'In the defendant's written version, he states, The defendant states that he uses heroin, but that those were not his balloons.
Thus the extended record does establish that there was a factual basis for the plea even though the record made by the judge at the time the plea of guilty was entered is deficient in this regard.
At the outset we feel it necessary to comment that much judicial time could be saved if the judge, the defense attorney, and the attorney for the State would make an effort to comply with the requirements of Rule 17.3, Arizona Rules of Criminal Procedure. We agree with the statement of Judge Stevens in this case:
'* * * This case underlines the necessity that the trial court utilize Form XIX, Guilty plea checklist, attached to the Arizona Rules of Criminal Procedure, because even the most experienced trial judge may forget the highly technical requirements of the relatively new criminal rules.' State v. Rodriguez, 22 Ariz.App. 478, 479, 528 P.2d 864, 865--66 (1974).
We would also add that it is the duty of the prosecutor, if he wishes to preserve the integrity of the guilty plea he has obtained, to call to the attention of the trial judge at the time the guilty plea is entered any omissions that the trial judge may have made because of the trial court's failure to follow the checklist as set down in the Rules of Criminal Procedure 1973. An appeal of this kind, which could have been so easily avoided, is simply a waste of judicial manpower. Had the trila judge followed the rules and had the prosecution pointed out to the court his omissions when he failed to follow them, we would not have to be...
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State v. Snodgrass
...be shown through the evidence adduced at the plea proceeding and/or through an examination of the extended record. State v. Rodriguez, 112 Ariz. 193, 540 P.2d 665 (1975); State v. Mendiola, 23 Ariz.App. 251, 532 P.2d 193 (1975), adopted and approved as the opinion of the Arizona Supreme Cou......
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State v. Pierce
...and capable of entering an intelligent plea. Any other conclusion would run counter to the views expressed in State v. Rodriguez, 112 Ariz. 193, 540 P.2d 665 (1975), as to the duties of counsel, and would be inconsistent with the orderly administration of criminal We return to the thread of......
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State v. Johnson
...is technical not reversible error when the extended record establishes a factual basis for a guilty plea. State v. Rodriguez, 112 Ariz. 193, 194-95, 540 P.2d 665, 666-67 (1975); accord State v. Mendiola, 23 Ariz.App. 251, 252-54, 532 P.2d 193, 194-96 (1975), approved and adopted in, 112 Ari......
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State v. Sims
...fully competent. Appellant's attorney conceded, in fact, that his client was fully competent to enter the plea. See State v. Rodriguez, 112 Ariz. 193, 540 P.2d 665 (1975), and State v. Pierce, 116 Ariz. 435, 569 P.2d 865 (App.1977). Further, appellant appears to have made a "good deal" with......