FORREST P. REED, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE

Fla. 1st DCA | 2005-06-13
No. 1D04-4901
WEBSTER and DAVIS, JJ., concur; THOMAS, J., dissents with written opinion.
903 So. 2d 344 Florida District Court of Appeal, First District (2005) Positive Treatment
Cited by 8 cases

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Synopsis

Appellant Reed was convicted of multiple drug charges and sentenced to 65 years in prison. He sought post-conviction relief claiming his counsel ineffectively advised him that certain charges would be dropped, causing him to reject a favorable 5-year plea offer. The appellate court reversed the summary denial of this ineffective assistance claim, finding it facially sufficient and requiring an evidentiary hearing.


Holding

The court held that appellant stated a facially sufficient claim for ineffective assistance of counsel based on counsel's misadvice that certain charges would be dropped, causing him to reject a favorable plea offer. The trial court erred in summarily denying the claim based on credibility determinations without an evidentiary hearing, and the case must be remanded for such a hearing unless the trial court can attach record evidence conclusively refuting the allegations.


Headnotes

[1] A facially sufficient claim that counsel was ineffective for affirmatively misadvising a defendant as to the maximum sentence they would face if they went to trial warran…

[2] A claim that misinformation supplied by counsel induced a defendant to reject a favorable plea offer can constitute actionable ineffective assistance of counsel.

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Key Quotes

“a claim that misinformation supplied by counsel induced a defendant to reject a favorable plea offer can constitute actionable ineffective assistance of counsel”

Establishes that Reed's allegation of counsel's misadvice regarding charges constitutes a facially sufficient ineffective assistance claim under precedent.

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Facts & Procedural History

Reed was convicted by jury of three counts of sale of cocaine, one count of possession of cocaine with intent to sell, and one count of possession of …

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Opinion of the Court
PER CURIAM.

PER CURIAM.

Appellant challenges the trial court’s order summarily denying his motion alleging ineffective assistance of counsel filed pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850. Because appellant has stated a facially sufficient claim that his counsel was ineffective in affirmatively misadvising him as to the maximum sentence he would face if he went to trial, we reverse. We affirm all of the other issues raised without further discussion.

Following a jury trial, appellant was convicted of three counts of sale of cocaine, one count of possession of cocaine with intent to sell, and one count of possession of marijuana with intent to sell, and was sentenced to sixty-five years in prison. In his rule 3.850 motion, appellant alleges that his counsel was ineffective for misinforming him that the charges of possession of cocaine with intent to sell and possession of marijuana with intent to sell would be dropped. He alleges that, due to such misadvice, he rejected the state’s plea offer of five years in prison because he thought he faced only three charges, rather than five. He asserts, further, that if counsel had told him before trial that the charges would not be dropped, he would have accepted the state’s plea offer. The claim is facially sufficient. See generally Steel v. State, 684 So. 2d 290 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996) (“[a] claim that misinformation supplied by counsel induced a defendant to reject a favorable plea offer can constitute actionable ineffective assistance of counsel”).

The trial court denied appellant’s claim based on a credibility determination, without an evidentiary hearing. Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.141(b)(2)(D) requires reversal and remand for an evidentiary hearing unless the allegations are conclusively refuted by the record. Because there was no evidentiary hearing to determine the truthfulness of appellant’s allegations, both the trial court and this court must accept those allegations as true. Instead, the trial court made a credibility determination. Accordingly, we reverse the summary denial of appellant’s claim for ineffective assistance of counsel based on affirmative misadvice. On remand, the trial court may again summarily deny this claim provided that it attaches to its order portions of the record conclusively refuting it; otherwise, it shall hold an evidentiary hearing. In all other respects, the trial court’s order is affirmed.

AFFIRMED IN PART; REVERSED IN PART; and REMANDED, with directions.

WEBSTER and DAVIS, JJ., concur; THOMAS, J., dissents with written opinion.

Dissent
THOMAS, J.,

THOMAS, J.,

dissents.

I respectfully dissent. I believe this is one of those rare cases in which the trial court and this court can determine that Appellant’s ineffective assistance claim is “inherently incredible.” Thus, summary denial of the claim is permissible. See generally, McLin v. State, 827 So. 2d 948 (Fla.2002). Appellant was age 40 at first appearance in this case. He rejected a plea offer of five years in state prison, willingly risking exposure to 45 years in state prison. He thus concedes that he accepted the possibility of remaining in prison until reaching the age of 85. Appellant now essentially claims that he would have accepted the plea offer of five years if he had known that he was facing 65 years in state prison. This claim is inherently incredible on its face.

I acknowledge that a trial court generally may not make a credibility determination without conducting an evidentiary hearing. The court in McLin recognizes that there “may be cases where, from the face of the affidavit, it can be determined that the affidavit is ‘inherently incredible.’ ” Id. at 955. Although the court in McLin declined to affirm a summary denial on that basis, there must be some cases in which such a determination may be made. I respectfully submit this is such a ease.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Reyna v. State, 18 So. 3d 1131 (Fla. 2d DCA 2009)
    …informed by trial counsel that he could have received all previous jail time credits and prison credits toward the (20) year plea deal, which would have made his sentence lesser, then he would have accepted the State’s offer. See also Reed v. State, 903 So. 2d 344 (Fla. 1DCA 2006 [2005]); citing Steel v. State, 684 So. 2d 290 (Fla. 4DCA 1996) “A claim that misinformation supplied by counsel induced a defendant to reject a favorable plea offer can constitute actionable ineffective assistance of counsel.” 19).…
  • Hollis v. Massa, 211 So. 3d 266 (Fla. 4th DCA 2017)
    …nse counsel’s denial that he possessed the requested materials was wholly conclusory. The trial court should not have denied appellant’s petition based upon a credibility determination without first holding an evidentiary hearing. See Reed v. State, 903 So. 2d 344, 344 (Fla. 1st DCA 2005) (trial court should not have denied postconviction claim based upon a credibility determination without first holding an evidentiary hearing). Accordingly, we reverse and remand for an evidentiary hearing. At the evidentiar…
  • Jackson v. State, 987 So. 2d 233 (Fla. 4th DCA 2008)
    …rable plea offer); Wright v. State, 892 So. 2d 1209 (Fla. 5th DCA 2005) (legally sufficient claim where defendant asserted that had counsel not misadvised him as to the maximum sentence, he would have accepted the state’s plea offer); Reed v. State, 903 So. 2d 344 (Fla. 1st DCA 2005) (same). As Jackson’s claim is not conclusively refuted by the record, we reverse and remand for the trial court to attach portions of the record refuting the claim or to hold an evidentiary hearing. POLEN and TAYLOR, JJ., con…

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