JUAN CARLOS CASTRO, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE

Fla. 2d DCA | 2001-08-31
No. 2D01-1723
FULMER and GREEN, JJ., Concur.
794 So. 2d 680 Florida District Court of Appeal, Second District (2001)

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.

Synopsis

Juan Carlos Castro appealed the summary denial of his Rule 3.850 postconviction relief motion, claiming his sentence violated his plea agreement. The Florida Second District Court of Appeal affirmed the denial of most claims but reversed the denial regarding the plea agreement claim, finding the trial court erred by summarily denying relief when the record showed a discrepancy between the negotiated and imposed sentences.


Holding

The trial court erred by summarily denying Castro's plea agreement claim because it was not conclusively refuted by the record. Castro demonstrated prejudice because his total prison time would not be reduced if he successfully challenged his robbery conviction or sentence, given the structure of the imposed sentences. The court reversed this portion and remanded for the trial court to either impose the negotiated sentences or allow Castro to withdraw his plea.


Headnotes

[1] A claim that a defendant was sentenced contrary to a plea agreement is not conclusively refuted by the record attachments when the plea form and hearing transcript reflec…

[2] When a negotiated plea agreement cannot be honored, the defendant must be advised that they may withdraw their plea.

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Key Quotes

“When a negotiated plea agreement cannot be honored, the defendant may withdraw his plea and the trial court has an affirmative duty to so advise the defendant.”

Establishes the legal standard for breach of plea agreements and the trial court's mandatory duty

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Facts & Procedural History

Castro was convicted of robbery and battery after a jury trial in one case and pleaded no contest to armed burglary and grand theft in two other cases…

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Opinion of the Court
BLUE, Chief Judge.

BLUE, Chief Judge.

Juan Carlos Castro timely appeals the summary denial of his motion for postcon-viction relief, filed pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850. We affirm the denial of all claims but one. In one claim, Castro alleged that he was sentenced contrary to his plea agreement. Because this claim is not conclusively refuted by the record attachments, the trial court erred by summarily denying relief. We reverse on this claim but affirm in all other respects.

In circuit court case 98-2443, after a jury trial, Castro was convicted of robbery and battery on a person over sixty-five years of age. In case 98-3475, Castro pleaded no contest to armed burglary of a dwelling and two counts of third-degree grand theft. In case 98-3665, Castro pleaded no contest to armed burglary of a dwelling and grand theft. Castro faced a potential life sentence as a prison releasee reoffender. In his motion for postconviction relief, Castro claimed that his plea agreement was violated because he did not receive the negotiated sentences. The plea form stated that Castro would receive a fifteen-year sentence for robbery and a consecutive twenty-year sentence for the two armed burglaries, for a total of thirty-five years in prison. The plea form stated that the sentence was a stipulated upward departure but that Castro would not be sentenced as a prison releasee reoffender. In the transcript from the plea and sentencing hearing on March 12, 1999, defense counsel and the prosecutor represented this as the sentencing agreement. The trial court agreed to sentence Castro pursuant to the terms of the plea but then referred to it as a thirty-five-year sentence. Castro in fact received a thirty-five-year sentence for two armed burglaries and a concurrent fifteen-year sentence for robbery.

In its order denying relief, the trial court stated that Castro did not sign a “plea agreement,” only an Acknowledgment and Waiver of Rights form. The trial court also stated that “[ajlthough the terms of the plea and sentencing agreement do not exactly match what is written on the Acknowledgment and Waiver form,” Castro was informed of the sentence during the plea colloquy and voiced no disagreement. The trial court concluded that Castro failed to demonstrate prejudice.

“When a negotiated plea agreement cannot be honored, the defendant may withdraw his plea and the trial court has an affirmative duty to so advise the defendant.” Goldberg v. State, 536 So. 2d 364, 365 (Fla. 2d DCA 1988) (emphasis added). See also Hunt v. State, 508 So. 2d 40 (Fla. 2d DCA 1987) (reversing denial of postconviction relief when defendant’s sen tence was contrary to plea agreement). Castro argues, and we agree, that he is prejudiced by the trial court’s failure to impose the negotiated sentences of twenty years for the armed burglaries because his total prison time would not be reduced if he successfully challenged his robbery conviction or sentence. Accordingly, we reverse the summary denial of this claim. On remand, the trial court shall impose the negotiated sentences or allow Castro to withdraw his plea.

We affirm without discussion the remainder of the claims that were summarily denied. We note that claims asserting ineffective assistance of appellate counsel must be raised in a petition filed pursuant to Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.141(c). See Oakley v. State, 677 So. 2d 879 (Fla. 2d DCA 1996).

Affirmed in part; reversed in part; remanded.

FULMER and GREEN, JJ., Concur.


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