Westerman v. State
| Decision Date | 26 February 2015 |
| Docket Number | No. CR–13–598,CR–13–598 |
| Citation | 456 S.W.3d 374,2015 Ark. 69 |
| Parties | Marion Gene Westerman, Appellant v. State of Arkansas, Appellee |
| Court | Arkansas Supreme Court |
Stuart Vess, North Little Rock, for appellant.
Dustin McDaniel, Att'y Gen., by: Lauren Elizabeth Heil, Ass't Att'y Gen., Little Rock, for appellee.
On September 10, 2001, appellant, Marion Gene Westerman, entered a guilty plea to one count of rape, and he was sentenced to life imprisonment. On April 1, 2013, Westerman filed a petition for writ of error coram nobis in which he argued that he was entitled to the writ because he was insane at the time he entered his guilty plea and because his guilty plea was coerced. Without conducting a hearing, the circuit court denied the petition and Westerman's motion for reconsideration. Westerman timely appealed. On appeal, Westerman argues that the circuit court abused its discretion by not conducting a hearing on his petition. We affirm the circuit court's decision.
On October 19, 2000, the State charged Westerman by information with six counts of rape. The victim in each count was his stepdaughter. DNA evidence confirmed that his stepdaughter had given birth to his child. At defense counsel's request, the court ordered Westerman to undergo a mental-health evaluation and committed him to the Arkansas State Hospital for a period not to exceed thirty days. The State Hospital, however, conducted an outpatient evaluation. Westerman was diagnosed as having cocaine and amphetamine dependence
in a controlled environment and antisocial personality traits. The report further indicated that Westerman appeared to be aware of the nature of his charges and the proceedings taken against him; that he was capable of cooperating effectively with his attorney in the preparation of the case; and that at the time of the commission of the alleged offense, he did not lack the capacity to appreciate the criminality of his conduct or to conform his conduct to the requirements of the law. The court entered an order stating that Westerman was competent to proceed at trial and had the ability to assist in the preparation and conduct of his own defense. At a later hearing, defense counsel noted that the State Hospital had conducted an outpatient, rather than an inpatient, evaluation that was ordered by the court. He concluded, however, that he did not “think in this case it's going to make any kind of difference based on the information that they did use we've received.”
On September 10, 2001, Westerman pleaded guilty to one count of rape. The State agreed to enter a nolle prosequi of the five remaining rape counts with the understanding that the counts would not be refiled as long as Westerman cooperated in the prosecution of his wife. Westerman stated that he was forty-five years old, held a GED, and had taken some college hours. Westerman admitted that he understood the plea documents, the proceedings taking place, and the charge of rape and its sentencing range of ten-to-forty years or life imprisonment. He further stated that there was nothing that prevented him from understanding the proceedings and that no one had applied any kind of force or pressure or threatened him.
The court found that Westerman had voluntarily, knowingly, and intelligently entered a guilty plea and understood the consequences of the plea. The court asked Westerman if he understood that the sentencing recommendation was that he serve a sentence of life imprisonment, and Westerman replied in the affirmative. The court accepted the guilty plea and the sentencing recommendation.
On April 1, 2013, Westerman filed a pro se petition for writ of error coram nobis. In it, he alleged that he suffered from insanity at the time of the guilty plea and that his guilty plea was coerced. On his claim of insanity, he noted that he did not receive a thirty-day, inpatient evaluation. On his claim of coercion, he alleged that his counsel had coerced him into pleading guilty with the threat that the State could seek additional life sentences. In its order denying the petition, the circuit court found that Westerman had not provided a factual basis to warrant relief. The court observed that the issue of Westerman's sanity had been addressed by the sentencing court and thus was not hidden or unknown to the sentencing court. The court further found that though Westerman had argued in his petition that his guilty plea was the result of the threat of receiving additional life sentences, his guilty plea was not coerced because a plea of guilty induced by the possibility of a more severe sentence does not amount to coercion. Westerman filed a motion for reconsideration, which the circuit court also denied, and Westerman timely appealed.
On appeal, Westerman again asserts that he was insane at the time of the guilty plea and that his guilty plea was coerced. Westerman argues that he made a “prima facie case” that would justify the issuance of the writ and that the circuit court should have held a hearing to determine whether Westerman could have proved the allegations. Westerman notes that he did not receive the thirty-day, inpatient evaluation ordered by the sentencing court and that this deficiency was not addressed by the sentencing court. Westerman further notes that he accepted a plea to one count of rape in...
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