MARIO VALLADARES, APPELLANT,
v.
THE STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Mario Valladares appealed the denial of his postconviction motion seeking mitigation of his sentence based on an alleged agreement with the state. The court, accepting the state's confession of error, held that Valladares was entitled to an evidentiary hearing to determine whether his failure to appear for sentencing was willful, as required under Florida precedent.
The court held that Valladares was entitled to an evidentiary hearing to determine whether his failure to appear was willful, as the record did not conclusively refute his claim that the failure was due to incarceration on other charges rather than willful non-compliance with the plea agreement.
[1] A defendant may be entitled to the bargained-for mitigation of a sentence if their failure to appear for sentencing was not willful, such as due to incarceration on other…
[2] A trial court must hold an evidentiary hearing on a motion for post-conviction relief when the record does not conclusively refute the defendant's claim that their failur…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“if a defendant's failure to appear for sentencing pursuant to the terms of his/her plea agreement was not willful (e.g. due to incarceration on other charges), then he/she is arguably entitled to the bargained for mitigation of his/her sentence”
Establishes the legal standard from Johnson v. State that non-willful failure to appear entitles a defendant to bargained-for sentence mitigation
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceOn February 18, 1998, Valladares entered a no contest plea to felony charges and was sentenced to 25 months in state prison. The trial court agreed to…
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PER CURIAM.
CONFESSION OF ERROR
By way of a timely motion for postcon-viction relief made pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850, the appellant sought to have his sentence mitigated to six (6) months in the Dade County jail, as was allegedly agreed to by the appellant and the state. The trial court denied the motion without an evidentiary hearing.
On February 18, 1998 the appellant had entered a no contest plea to felony charges and was adjudicated guilty. The appellant thereafter requested that he be permitted to surrender two weeks later so that he could make custody arrangements for his children. The trial court granted the appellant’s request by sentencing him to twenty-five (25) months in state prison with the understanding that when the appellant surrendered in two weeks, March 4, 1998, his sentence would be mitigated to six (6) months in the Dade County jail. The appellant did not surrender on March 4, 1998, and therefore the lower court left the twenty-five month state prison sentence unaltered.
The appellant filed a motion for post-conviction relief claiming that he did not willfully fail to meet the condition necessary for mitigation of his sentence. Rather, the appellant claims that he was in the custody of the Hendry County Department of Corrections on felony charges which were committed prior to his plea agreement on the Dade County charges.
In Johnson v. State, 501 So. 2d 158, 160-61 (Fla. 3d DCA 1987), we held that if a defendant’s failure to appear for sentencing pursuant to the terms of his/her plea agreement was not willful (e.g. due to incarceration on other charges), then he/she is arguably entitled to the bargained for mitigation of his/her sentence.
Here, the record does not conclusively refute the appellant’s claim that his failure to appear on March 4, 1998 in Dade County was not willful. Thus, the state has properly confessed error and, requests that this matter be remanded to the trial court for an evidentiary hearing on the issue of the appellant’s willfulness. We agree and remand this case with directions that the lower court hold an evidentiary hearing to determine whether the appellant’s failure to appear at his scheduled sentencing was willful.
Remanded with directions.
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Citator
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Ceasar Robinson v. State, 946 So. 2d 565 (Fla. 2d DCA 2006)…that Robinson’s late arrival was willful. Robinson relied on Lee v. State, 471 So. 2d 195 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985), Johnson v. State, 501 So. 2d 158, 160-61 (Fla. 3d DCA 1987), Green v. State, 680 So. 2d 1072 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996), and Valladares v. State, 754 So. 2d 190, 191 (Fla. 3d DCA 2000), to support his claim. Lastly, he alleged that if he would have known that his negotiated sentence would be increased, he would have taken his chances at trial. The postconviction court denied the claim, finding that Robinso…
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Garcia v. State, 10 So. 3d 687 (Fla. 2d DCA 2009)…Garcia entered a plea. A claim that a defendant did not willfully fail to meet the conditions necessary for mitigation of his sentence is cognizable in the postconviction context even if the de [*689] fendant entered a plea. See Valladares v. State, 754 So. 2d 190, 191 (Fla. 3d DCA 2000). “ ‘[W]here timely appearance for sentencing is made a condition of a plea agreement, a non-willful failure to appear will not vitiate the agreement and permit the trial court to impose some greater sentence.’” Robinson v. St…
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Orange v. State, 983 So. 2d 4 (Fla. 3d DCA 2007)…orgia probation. Once the Georgia trial judge sentenced the defendant to incarceration in Georgia, there was no way for the defendant to personally appear at the Florida sentencing hearing and comply with the plea agreement. See Valladares v. State, 754 So. 2d 190 (Fla. 3d DCA 2000); Johnson v. State, 501 So. 2d 158 (Fla. 3d DCA 1987). In Johnson, this Court held that “where timely appearance for sentencing is made a condition of a plea agreement, a nonwillful failure to appear will not vitiate the agreement…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Johnson v. State, 501 So. 2d 158 (Fla. 3d DCA 1987)