ERIC LANE, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Eric Lane appealed the denial of a post-conviction motion under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850, claiming his plea was involuntary due to lack of knowledge of the statutory maximum penalty and that his counsel was ineffective for failing to withdraw the plea. The court reversed as to the first two claims and remanded for an evidentiary hearing or record attachment, finding the claims facially sufficient.
The court held that Lane's claims regarding the involuntariness of his plea and counsel's ineffectiveness in failing to move to withdraw the plea are facially sufficient and should not have been summarily denied. The court affirmed the third claim regarding failure to file a direct appeal without further comment.
[1] A plea is involuntary if a defendant pleads to a crime without being aware of the statutory maximum penalty for that crime.
[2] A defendant's allegations that he was unaware of the statutory maximum penalty for his crime and would not have pled guilty had he been aware, are facially sufficient to…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“a plea is involuntary if a defendant pleads to a crime when he is unaware of the maximum penalty of such crime”
Establishes the legal standard for determining whether a plea is involuntary based on lack of knowledge of statutory maximum penalties.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceLane pled nolo contendere to driving under the influence with serious bodily injury in exchange for 36 months incarceration followed by two years prob…
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BROWNING, J.
This is an appeal from the denial of a motion filed pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850. We agree with two of Appellant’s three claims, reverse the trial court’s order as to those claims, and remand for attachment of portions of the record which conclusively refute Appellant’s claims or for an evidentiary hearing.
Appellant pled nolo contendere to driving under the influence with serious bodily injury, in exchange for his sentence of 36 months of incarceration followed by two years of probation. Thereafter, Appellant filed a timely rule 3.850 motion alleging three grounds for relief: (1) that his plea was involuntary because he was not informed of the statutory maximum of his crime; (2) that his counsel was ineffective for failing to withdraw Appellant’s plea despite Appellant’s request; and (3) that his counsel was ineffective for failing to file a direct appeal. We affirm the third issue without further comment. However, we hold that Appellant’s first and second claims are facially sufficient and should not have been summarily denied.
As to the first claim, a plea is involuntary if a defendant pleads to a crime when he is unaware of the maximum penalty of such crime. Ford v. State, 433 So. 2d 1335 (Fla. 2d DCA 1983); Fla. R.Crim. P. 3.172(c)(1)- Appellant alleged that neither the trial court nor his counsel informed him of the statutory maximum of the crime, and that his counsel affirmatively misadvised him that his sentence would have a cap of 51 months. Appellant also alleged that he would not have pled “had counsel or the court ... advised him of the maximum penalties he could receive.” These allegations are not refuted by the record, which reveals that Appellant pled in exchange for a sentence of 36 months followed by two years of probation, that no written plea was executed, and that the trial court informed Appellant that, under the plea, “the most you can get is thirty-six months followed by two years of probation.” These facts do not demonstrate that Appellant knew that the statutory maximum for his offense was five years, or 60 months, of incarceration. See §§ 316.193(3)(c)(2), 775.082(3)(d), Fla. Stat. (2000). Thus, Appellant has stated a facially sufficient claim that his plea was involuntary.
As to the second claim, Appellant has stated a facially sufficient claim of ineffective assistance as to counsel’s failure to file a motion to withdraw the plea. Appellant’s allegation that his plea was involuntary is facially sufficient, and if the plea was, indeed, involuntary, counsel would be ineffective for failing to file a motion to withdraw the plea. Thus, unless the trial court can provide on remand portions of the record that conclusively refute Appellant’s allegations, the trial court must determine at an evidentiary hearing whether Appellant’s plea was involuntary and, if so, whether counsel failed to inform Appellant of his right to file a motion to withdraw the plea and whether Appellant would have exercised that right. See Jackson v. State, 801 So. 2d 1024, 1026 (Fla. 5th DCA 2001).
We additionally note that the state, in responding to this Court’s order to show cause why the order should not be reversed, conceded that a remand for attachments or an evidentiary hearing is necessary. Accordingly, we REVERSE and REMAND as to the Appellant’s first and second claims, and AFFIRM as to the third claim.
ERVIN and BOOTH, JJ., CONCUR.
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Citator
Cited By
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Lull v. State, 140 So. 3d 692 (Fla. 1st DCA 2014)…as to Appellant’s second claim that trial counsel acted ineffectively because he failed to inform Appellant of the correct statutory maximum sentences he faced for the three offenses charged against him before he entered his plea. See Lane v. State, 839 So. 2d 854, 855 (Fla. 1st DCA 2003) (stating “a plea is involuntary if a defendant pleads to a crime when he is unaware of the maximum penalty of such crime.”). The record attached by the lower court does not conclusively refute the claim, and the State has co…
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Jean-Gilles v. Sec'y, Dep't of Corr. (Manatee County) (M.D. Fla. 2024)…otential grounds and found no good faith basis for filing amended motion). The failure to file a motion to withdraw plea is deemed deficient only if it is determined that the defendant's plea was, in fact, involuntary. See Lane v. State, 839 So. 2d 854, 855 (Fla. 1st DCA 2003). Because the Court has resolved Ground 1, and found it to be without merit, Defendant cannot succeed on this claim. While the Court does not condone the actions of ORC in failing to file either a notice indic…
Authorities Cited
- Jackson v. State, 801 So. 2d 1024 (Fla. 5th DCA 2001)
- Carroll Dennis Ford v. State, 433 So. 2d 1335 (Fla. 2d DCA 1983)