DONALD ALTON SMOTHERS, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Trial court erred in denying post-conviction relief motion without an evidentiary hearing or attaching record portions as required by Rule 3.850, where defendant alleged his plea was not knowingly entered.
When a post-conviction relief motion alleges that a plea was not knowingly entered with full understanding of consequences, the trial court must either attach record portions refuting the claim or hold an evidentiary hearing, not summarily deny the motion.
[1] A trial court must attach portions of the record refuting a post-conviction relief motion or hold an evidentiary hearing when the motion alleges that a guilty plea was no…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“Rule 3.850, Florida Rules of Criminal Procedure, requires that unless a motion is legally insufficient on its face, the trial court must attach portions of the files and records conclusively showing that the defendant is not entitled to relief.”
Court explaining the procedural requirement for handling post-conviction relief motions
Defendant Smothers filed a post-conviction relief motion alleging his plea was not knowingly entered with full understanding of the consequences. The …
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DANIEL, Chief Judge.
The trial court denied defendant’s motion for post-conviction relief without an evidentiary hearing or attaching portions of the record. Rule 3.850, Florida Rules of Criminal Procedure, requires that unless a motion is legally insufficient on its face, the trial court must attach portions of the files and records conclusively showing that the defendant is not entitled to relief. Although inartfully drawn, defendant’s motion clearly alleges that his plea was not knowingly entered with a full understanding of the consequences. This is a proper ground for post-conviction relief. See, e.g., Mikenas v. State, 460 So. 2d 359 (Fla.1984). Since the motion is legally sufficient, the trial court should have attached portions of the record refuting defendant’s claim or, alternatively, held an evidentiary hearing regarding such claim.
In its response to the appeal, the state attempted to remedy the trial court’s oversight by providing portions of the record below. However, as the court held in Bateson v. State, 516 So. 2d 280 (Fla. 1st DCA 1987), it is inappropriate for the state to designate which records refute defendant’s allegations. Accordingly, the order denying defendant’s motion for post-conviction relief is reversed and the ease is remanded for further proceedings consistent herewith.
REVERSED and REMANDED.
COBB and SHARP, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By (13 total)
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Patton v. State, 784 So. 2d 380 (Fla. 2000)…rafted order specifically detailing the portions of the record that proved the claims were legally insufficient or conclusively rebutted. To the contrary, such a conclusory order would have been insufficient. Patton’s reliance on Smothers v. State, 555 So. 2d 452 (Fla. 5th DCA 1990), for the proposition that the court cannot rely on portions of the record supplied by the state attorney is not well taken because the record in that case was not given to the trial court for review at the time the response was f…
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Montgomery v. State, 615 So. 2d 226 (Fla. 5th DCA 1993)…recognized ground for post-conviction relief. However, in Mikenas v. State, 460 So. 2d 359 (Fla.1984), the Florida Supreme Court held that a defendant has the burden of showing that his plea was not knowing or voluntary. See also, Smothers v. State, 555 So. 2d 452 (Fla. 5th DCA 1990). Furthermore, an allegation that a plea was involuntary or was based on a misunderstanding or mistake can be refuted by a written plea agreement or plea transcript which conclusively establishes the defendant’s understanding and…
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Oehling v. State, 659 So. 2d 1226 (Fla. 5th DCA 1995)…6 (Fla. 5th DCA 1993); Debose v. State, 580 So. 2d 638 (Fla. 5th DCA 1991). We have held in the past that the state cannot cure the trial court’s oversight by designating portions of the record to refute a defendant’s allegations. Smothers v. State, 555 So. 2d 452 (Fla. 5th DCA 1990). See also McCray v. State, 633 So. 2d 561 (Fla. 4th DCA 1994). Accordingly, we reverse and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. AFFIRMED in part; REVERSED in part, and REMANDED. PETERSON, C.J., and HARR…
Previewing 3 of 13 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Mikenas v. State, 460 So. 2d 359 (Fla. 1984)
- Bateson v. State, 516 So. 2d 280 (Fla. 1st DCA 1987)