MISAEL HERNANDEZ, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
Misael Hernandez pleaded guilty to second degree murder through an interpreter, but appealed claiming his plea was involuntary. The appellate court reversed and remanded, finding the interpreter's conduct at the plea hearing—failing to properly interpret judicial questions and instead telling the appellant to plead guilty—rendered the voluntariness of the plea indeterminable.
The court held that the interpreter's conduct rendered it impossible to determine that Hernandez's plea was voluntarily made, and accordingly reversed the trial court's denial of post-conviction relief and remanded for the trial court to allow Hernandez to withdraw his plea and proceed to trial by jury if he so wished.
[1] A guilty plea is involuntary if the interpreter at the plea hearing fails to accurately convey the judge's questions to the defendant.
[2] A defendant's lack of education and unfamiliarity with the English language necessitate careful scrutiny of the voluntariness of a guilty plea entered through an interpre…
Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“the interpreter at the plea hearing in many instances did not interpret the questions the judge asked; she simply told appellant he should plead guilty”
Expert testimony establishing the interpreter's failure to properly translate judicial questions, which undermined the voluntariness of the plea
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceHernandez, a native of Mexico with minimal education and no English proficiency, was indicted for first degree murder. Pursuant to a negotiated agreem…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Voluntariness Of Guilty Plea cases and more on FLexlaw
PER CURIAM.
Appellant was indicted for first degree murder. Pursuant to a negotiated agreement, he pleaded guilty to second degree murder and was sentenced to fifteen years in prison with a mandatory three year minimum. Thereafter, appellant filed a motion for post conviction relief in which he attacked the voluntariness of his guilty plea. After an evidentiary hearing the trial court denied the motion and appellant perfected this appeal.
Appellant is a native of Mexico with virtually no education and he does not speak English. Accordingly, the hearing at which the court accepted his guilty plea was conducted through an interpreter. This record contains a tape recording of the plea hearing. In addition, testimony was adduced at the hearing on the post-conviction relief motion from an expert on Spanish interpretation. This expert listened to the tapes and testified that the interpreter at the plea hearing in many instances did not interpret the questions the judge asked; she simply told appellant he should plead guilty. Without delineating this entire colloquy among judge, interpreter, and appellant at the plea hearing, suffice to say that we are convinced that no one could determine appellant’s plea was voluntarily made from that hearing. See Monte v. State, 443 So. 2d 339 (Fla. 2d DCA 1983). If anything, the indications would lead to a contrary conclusion. We are most reluctant to reverse the veteran trial judge in a matter of this nature. However, we feel compelled to do so here in the interests of justice.
Accordingly, we reverse the order appealed from and remand the cause to the trial court with directions to allow appellant to withdraw his plea of guilty if he be so advised and provide him a trial by jury.
REVERSED 'AND REMANDED, with directions.
DOWNEY, HURLEY and DELL, JJ., concur.