ROBERT JOHNSON, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Florida appellate court affirmed denial of post-conviction relief where defendant failed to show prejudice from counsel's failure to advise him of potential penalty enhancement during plea negotiations, as defendant lacked familiarity with negotiations and the state had withdrawn the plea offer.
A defendant seeking post-conviction relief for counsel's failure to advise of penalty enhancement during plea negotiations must meet the strict requirements of Knight v. State and demonstrate prejudice, which cannot be shown when the defendant lacks familiarity with the negotiations and the plea offer has been withdrawn.
Appellant Johnson sought post-conviction relief claiming his counsel failed to advise him during plea negotiations that the penalty he faced upon conv…
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PER CURIAM.
Affirmed. We do not believe the trial court erred in denying appellant’s motion for post-conviction relief predicated on his counsel’s failure to advise him during the course of plea negotiations that the penalty he faced upon conviction could be enhanced. Initially, we note that appellant's testimony reflects a complete lack of familiarity with the plea negotiations, so that the trial court would have had to speculate as to what appellant would have done had he been properly advised.
Hence, appellant has failed to meet the strict requirements set out in Knight v. State, 394 So. 2d 997 (Fla.1981).
We also note that once the appellant’s lawyer realized the potential consequences, the state refused to extend the same terms to appellant, as it had a right to do, and insisted upon going to trial. The appellant claims no trial error, and the trial court was, in no position to compel the state to extend the same plea offer, even if it determined that appellant would have accepted such offer. In short, there is no claim here that appellant did not receive a fair trial and we cannot put him back in a position of evaluating a plea offer long since withdrawn. This case is unlike that of Castro v. State, 419 So. 2d 796 (Fla. 3d DCA 1982) where the defendant was clearly prejudiced when it was shown that he had entered a guilty plea on the basis of an erroneous calculation of the penalties he faced. See also Beckham v. Wainwright, 639 F. 2d 262 (5th Cir.1981).
ANSTEAD, C.J., and LETTS and GLICKSTEIN, JJ., concur.
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Rosa v. State, 712 So. 2d 414 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998)…issue.1 WARNER, KLEIN and GROSS, JJ., ! concur. . Just as the court in Young speculated on the available remedy for this ineffectiveness claim, see 608 So. 2d at 113 n. 4, we too are concerned about the available remedy. Compare Johnson v. State, 452 So. 2d 1035 (Fla. 4th DCA 1984), with In re Alvernaz, 2 Cal.4th 924, 8 Cal.Rptr.2d 713, 830 P. 2d 747 (1992). We asked the state to comment on these cases. However, the state responded that any discussion of a remedy was premature. If we were to follow Johnson,…
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State v. Downs (Fla. 5th DCA 2023)…revious postconviction motion. That alone compels the conclusion that Downs failed to meet his burden. See Maharaj v. State, 778 So. 2d 944, 951 (Fla. 2000) ("Postconviction relief cannot be based on speculation or possibility."); Johnson v. State, 452 So. 2d 1035, 1035–36 (Fla. 4th DCA 1984) ("[A]ppellant's testimony reflects a complete lack of familiarity with the plea negotiations, so that the trial court would have had to speculate as to what appellant would have done had he been properly advised."). How…
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Tabraue v. State, 778 So. 2d 536 (Fla. 3d DCA 2001)…PER CURIAM. Affirmed. See Johnson v. State, 452 So. 2d 1035 (Fla. 4th DCA 1984).…
Previewing 3 of 5 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Knight v. State, 394 So. 2d 997 (Fla. 1981)
- Glimmert Beckham v. Louie L. Wainwright, 639 F.2d 262 (5th Cir. 1981)
- Reinolds Enrique Castro v. State, 419 So. 2d 796 (Fla. 3d DCA 1982)