State v. Thielsen, 22673

• Decision Date: 04 February 2004
• Docket Number: No. 22673,22673
• Citation: 2004 SD 17,675 NW 2d 429
• Parties: STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA, Plaintiff and Appellee, v. PATRICK JON THIELSEN, Defendant and Appellant.
• Court: South Dakota Supreme Court

2004 SD 17

675 NW 2d 429

STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA, Plaintiff and Appellee, v. PATRICK JON THIELSEN, Defendant and Appellant.

No. 22673

Supreme Court of South Dakota.

Argued On January 14, 2004

Opinion Filed February 4, 2004

LAWRENCE E. LONG, Attorney General, Attorneys for plaintiff and appellee.

FRANK GEAGHAN, Assistant Attorney General, Pierre, South Dakota, Attorneys for plaintiff and appellee.

TIMOTHY D. BORMANN, Faulkton, South Dakota, Attorney for defendant, and appellant.

KONENKAMP, Justice.

[¶ 1.] Defendant was charged with the rape and murder of one woman and the rape of another, as well as aggravated assault and attempted escape from custody. On the morning his jury trial for the rape charge was to begin, he pleaded guilty under a plea agreement to murder and rape. In exchange, the State dismissed the remaining charges and dropped its request for the death penalty, whereupon defendant would receive a life sentence without possibility of parole. After the plea but before sentencing, defendant moved to withdraw his guilty plea. In the hearing to withdraw his plea, defendant alleged that he was innocent and that he had entered the plea under coercion in a state of severe emotional and physical distress. The trial court denied defendant's motion, finding that he had entered the plea knowingly and willingly and that the motion was frivolous. On appeal, defendant contends that the trial court abused its discretion because his argument that he was coerced into accepting a plea agreement amounted to a tenable reason for withdrawal of his plea. Because the record shows that defendant's grounds for wishing to withdraw his plea were insufficient, we find no abuse of discretion and affirm.

Background

[¶ 2.] On November 9, 2001, a Brown County Grand Jury indicted defendant, Patrick Jon Thielsen, for the felony murder of Kelly Ryan (Count I), or in the alternative, the first degree murder of Kelly Ryan (Count II). The indictment also charged defendant with the second degree rapes of Kelly Ryan (Count III) and T.L.J. (Count IV). Finally, the indictment charged defendant with aggravated assault (Count VI) against a jailer while attempting to escape from custody (Count V).

[¶ 3.] The court appointed attorneys Leon J. Vander Linden, Thomas L. Sannes, and William D. Gerdes to represent defendant. Although the trial court denied defendant's motion requesting an attorney with greater experience in capital cases, the court authorized attorney Mark Meierhenry to act as a consultant.

[¶ 4.] On February 7, 2002, defendant was arraigned and pleaded "not guilty" to the charges contained in the Indictment. However, on November 11, 2002, the day before trial for the rape of T.L.J., the Brown County State's Attorney made a plea bargain proposal to defense counsel. That same day defendant was transported from the South Dakota State Penitentiary to a holding cell at the Brown County Jail. Defendant arrived at 5:30 p.m. His holding cell was a six-foot by nine-foot room. The cell contained no water or toilet and was lit by a single light bulb, which remained on throughout the night. The cell contained a mattress that rested directly on the floor.

[¶ 5.] The next morning, November 12, 2002, defendant was allowed to shower and dress for his scheduled court appearance. He wore a suit provided by his wife; however, he was still required to wear handcuffs and a leg brace. At 8:00 a.m., defendant met with his attorneys and his wife in a small conference room. Almost two hours later, defense counsel called in a court reporter to record the discussions on defendant's decision to accept the State's plea offer. During this discussion, defense counsel explained to defendant the content and import of the proposed plea agreement. Counsel set forth the pros and cons of accepting the agreement. Counsel spent several minutes explaining to defendant his constitutional rights and the consequences of entering into the plea agreement. At the conclusion of that meeting, defendant signed the plea agreement.

[¶ 6.] Under the agreement, defendant would plead guilty to the murder of Kelly Ryan and the rape of T.L.J. In exchange for his plea, the State would drop the remaining charges and not seek the death penalty.

[¶ 7.] At 10:40 a.m., the change of plea hearing convened. During the hearing, the judge asked defendant whether he had signed the plea agreement, whether he had read the agreement, whether he had understood the agreement, and whether he had the opportunity to discuss the agreement with his attorneys. Defendant answered affirmatively to all the questions. Additionally, the agreement was read aloud by the State. Again, the judge asked if defendant understood and agreed to the plea agreement. Defendant answered that he did. The Indictment was then read aloud by the State. Again, the judge asked if defendant understood the charges against him. Defendant responded, "Yes." The judge then informed defendant that the minimum sentence was life without the possibility of parole. Defendant acknowledged his understanding of the minimum sentence. The judge informed defendant of his constitutional rights to a speedy and public trial and the rights accompanying a trial. The judge informed defendant that as a result of his guilty plea he would effectively waive those constitutional rights. The judge specifically asked defendant whether he had enough time to speak with his attorneys about his plea, whether he had the opportunity to discuss possible defenses with his attorneys, whether his attorneys had explained his constitutional rights, and whether he was satisfied with his attorneys' advice. Finally, the judge asked defendant if his plea was voluntary and whether he had been threatened, forced, or intimidated into entering a plea. At no time did defendant indicate to the court that he was not entering the plea knowingly and freely.

[¶ 8.] Following the judge's questioning, the court found that defendant was acting voluntarily and intelligently, was represented by able counsel, was competent to enter a plea, and understood the nature and consequences of the plea. The defendant then entered his "guilty" plea. Afterwards, the hearing was continued until 2:00 p.m. so that a factual basis stipulation could be prepared.

[¶ 9.] From 10:55 a.m. until 2:00 p.m., defendant sat in the conference room with his wife. The factual basis stipulation was prepared and defendant signed it. At 2:10 p.m., the hearing was reconvened. The judge asked defendant whether he had an opportunity to examine the factual basis stipulation, whether he read it, whether he signed it, whether he consulted with his attorneys before signing it, whether he voluntarily signed it, whether he understood it, and whether the stipulated statement was true and correct. To each question, defendant responded, "Yes."

[¶ 10.] Although defendant would later testify that he did not read the factual basis stipulation, the statement was read aloud in open court in his presence. In essence, defendant agreed that on November 1, 2001, he premeditatedly murdered Kelly Ryan in her home in Aberdeen, South Dakota, "by ligature strangulation, blunt force trauma to her abdomen causing a ruptured liver, and by stabbing her in the chest with a knife." Thereafter he fled the scene of the murder. The victim's body was found on the basement floor of her home. The stipulation also provided that on September 26, 2001, defendant drove T.L.J. and her three-month-old daughter to a remote location in Brown County, where he twice forced T.L.J. to perform oral sex on him and where he performed an act of anal sex on her.

[¶ 11.] After the reading of the factual basis stipulation, the court accepted the plea. Sentencing was set for November 21, 2002. Defendant was returned to the South Dakota State Penitentiary in Sioux Falls where, as a matter of routine precaution, he was placed on a suicide watch. He spent 48 hours confined to a "hard cell." A hard cell is an eight by ten foot room with a bare concrete floor and a raised concrete pad upon which a mattress is placed. The cell has a toilet, but is kept at a very cool temperature. Inmates confined to a hard cell wear only a gown.

[¶ 12.] During the time he spent in the "hard cell," defendant came to the realization that he had been pressured by his wife and attorneys into entering his guilty plea. Consequently, he prepared and submitted a pro se motion to withdraw his plea of guilty and a motion to dismiss his appointed counsel.

[¶ 13.] On November 21, 2002, defendant was again transferred to Brown County. At the urging of his attorneys, defendant took the stand to explain his reasons for wishing to withdraw both of his guilty pleas. In support of his plea withdrawal, defense counsel had defendant describe the conditions under which he felt coerced to plead guilty. The prosecutor was given the opportunity to cross-examine.

[¶ 14.] Defendant testified that as a result of his living conditions and in an effort to console his distraught wife, he unknowingly and unwillingly entered into the plea agreement. After personally questioning the defendant, the court denied his motion to dismiss his attorneys and to withdraw his guilty plea, finding that defendant entered into the agreement knowingly and willingly. The judge recalled that when defendant pleaded guilty, the judge did not "note any mental deficiency or any lapse of memory or any other problems or indication that the defendant was emotionally upset in any manner." Furthermore, the court found that defendant's testimony "clearly" demonstrated that he understood the proceedings and that defendant's "motion to withdraw his plea [was] frivolous." Defendant was then sentenced in accordance with the agreement. With new counsel, defendant now appeals on the following issue: whether the circuit court abused its discretion by denying his motion, made before sentencing, to withdraw his guilty plea because he was coerced...