AARON JOHNSON, 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.
Aaron Johnson appealed his convictions on multiple charges after entering pleas of nolo contendere, contending that the trial court failed to honor the agreed-upon sentence range. The appellate court reversed and remanded, holding that when a trial court cannot honor a negotiated plea sentence due to newly discovered prior convictions, the defendant must be afforded the opportunity to withdraw his plea.
When a negotiated plea includes an agreed-upon sentence and the trial court later determines it cannot honor that sentence due to additional prior convictions discovered after the plea, the trial court has an affirmative duty to inform the defendant and afford him the opportunity to withdraw his plea, even if the defendant failed to disclose those convictions at the time of the plea.
[1] A defendant must be afforded the opportunity to withdraw a plea when a negotiated plea agreement cannot be honored by the trial judge.
[2] A defendant must be given the opportunity to withdraw a plea if, due to a subsequently discovered prior record, the trial court determines to impose a sentence greater th…
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“When a negotiated plea cannot be honored by the trial judge, the defendant may withdraw his plea and the trial court has an affirmative duty to so advise him, Goldberg v. State, 536 So.2d 364 (Fla. 2d DCA 1988), notwithstanding that he made the bargain without disclosing prior convictions not yet discovered by the authorities.”
Establishes the core holding that trial courts must afford withdrawal opportunities when plea bargains cannot be honored, even if the defendant did not disclose prior convictions.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceJohnson entered pleas of nolo contendere to two counts of uttering a forged instrument, trafficking in stolen property, and burglary of a structure. A…
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 Community Control cases and more on FLexlaw
JOANOS, Judge.
Johnson has appealed from judgments and sentences entered after his pleas of nolo contendere to two counts of uttering a forged instrument, trafficking in stolen property and burglary of a structure. We reverse.
Johnson executed a “plea, waiver and consent form” at the time his pleas were entered, which indicated his understanding “that I, my attorney, the assistant state attorney and the judge have agreed that I will receive a sentence within the recommended guideline range.” Elsewhere, however, on the form is the handwritten notation: “Guidelines sentence-community control.” Further, at the plea entry hearing, Johnson’s counsel stated that “the only terms of the plea agreement is [sic] that he receive a guidelines sentence, which we believe to be in the community control range.”
When he entered his pleas, Johnson took the position that five convictions then being attributed to him under an alias were not, in fact, his. However, a subsequent fingerprint match showed that the convictions were correctly attributed to Johnson. As a result of the additional convictions, the recommended guidelinés range at sentencing was not community control, but rather 2½ to 3½ years incarceration. Johnson was sentenced to three years incarceration on each charge, with varying terms of probation to follow. He was ordered, without notice or hearing, as a condition of probation, to pay court costs, statutory fees and attorney’s fees in each case.
When a negotiated plea cannot be honored by the trial judge, the defendant may withdraw his plea and the trial court has an affirmative duty to so advise him, Goldberg v. State, 536 So. 2d 364 (Fla. 2d DCA 1988), notwithstanding that he made the bargain without disclosing prior convictions not yet discovered by the authorities. Even if the trial court adheres to the bargain, opportunity to withdraw must be afforded if the plea itself was induced by some mistake or misunderstanding. Tobey v. State, 458 So. 2d 90 (Fla. 2d DCA 1984).
There is no mistake or misunderstanding sufficient to support, withdrawal of a plea if the defendant agrees to a plea bargain knowing, but not disclosing, a prior record additional to that known by the authorities at the entry of the plea, if no sentence has been specified. Goff v. State, 498 So. 2d 1035 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986). Here, the authorities had knowledge of the convictions but, because they were committed under an alias, Johnson maintained that they were incorrectly attributed to him until fingerprint matches belied that contention. Because he knew or should have known the extent of his own record at the entry of the pleas, it cannot be said that Johnson was induced to enter them by mistake or misunderstanding. Goff.
However, even given the later discovery of a record concealed by the defendant at the entry of his plea, the opportunity to withdraw must be given if, because of that additional record, the trial court determines to impose a sentence greater than that agreed upon. In this case, the record is susceptible of the reasonable inference that Johnson was promised a sentence of com munity control in exchange for his plea. Therefore, when the addition of the concealed record resulted in an increase in the agreed sentence, Johnson should have been given the opportunity to withdraw his pleas. We therefore reverse the judgments and sentences entered herein, and remand with directions to afford Johnson that opportunity.
Based on this disposition, we do not address the remaining points raised by Johnson on appeal. We note, however, that assessment of statutory and court costs as a condition of probation, absent adequate notice and a judicial determination of ability to pay, is erroneous. See Clarke v. State, 544 So. 2d 350 (Fla. 1st DCA 1989); Washington v. State, 545 So. 2d 443 (Fla. 1st DCA 1989).
Reversed and remanded with directions.
SHIVERS, C.J., and ERVIN, J., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By (11 total)
-
McCOLLUN v. State, 586 So. 2d 490 (Fla. 1st DCA 1991)…ea. Even if the alteration in the proposed sentence was due to the defendant’s failure to disclose his prior record, withdrawal of the plea must be an option if a sentence greater than that contemplated by the agreement is imposed. Johnson v. State, 547 So. 2d 238, 239-240 (Fla. 1st DCA 1989). In Johnson, the defendant disputed five convictions attributed to him under an alias. A subsequent fingerprint match established that he had five prior convictions. The five prior convictions raised his recommended gui…
-
Thomas v. State, 593 So. 2d 219 (Fla. 1992)…dant was nevertheless entitled to withdraw his plea because he was deprived of the benefit of his bargain, i.e., the persuasive effect of the State’s original recommendation. Lee, 501 So. 2d at 593; Fortini, 472 So. 2d at 1386; see Johnson v. State, 547 So. 2d 238, 239 (Fla. 1st DCA 1989); Tobey v. State, 458 So. 2d 90, 91 (Fla. 2d DCA 1984). Accordingly, based on our decision in Lee and because the State failed to comply with the terms of the plea agreement, we quash the decision below and remand with instr…
-
City OF Ormond Beach v. Kosmalski, 588 So. 2d 35 (Fla. 5th DCA 1991)…ght by the civil forfeiture and the criminal plea agreement is to allow Kos-malski to withdraw his plea, even though the confusion and misunderstanding concerning the forfeiture action is directly attributable to Kosmalski himself. Johnson v. State, 547 So. 2d 238 (Fla. 1st DCA 1989). REVERSED and REMANDED with instructions to allow the appellant to withdraw his plea. DAUKSCH and W. SHARP, JJ., concur. . § 932.703, Fla.Stat. (1989).…
Previewing 3 of 11 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Tobey v. State, 458 So. 2d 90 (Fla. 2d DCA 1984)
- Goldberg v. State, 536 So. 2d 364 (Fla. 2d DCA 1988)
- Oceanair OF Fla., Inc. v. Beech Acceptance Corp., 545 So. 2d 443 (Fla. 1st DCA 1989)
- Franklin v. State, 498 So. 2d 1035 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986)
- Goff v. State, 498 So. 2d 1035 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986)
- Clarke v. State, 544 So. 2d 350 (Fla. 1st DCA 1989)