THOMAS M. MCNULTY, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Thomas McNulty appealed the summary denial of his Rule 3.850 post-conviction motion alleging ineffective assistance of counsel. The Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed and remanded, finding that McNulty failed to allege the necessary threshold factors under State v. Kelly but was entitled to one opportunity to amend his motion under Spera v. State.
McNulty failed to allege the necessary Kelly factors—that the offense was punishable by imprisonment, that he was indigent and entitled to appointed counsel, and that he did not waive counsel—in his initial 3.850 motion. However, under Spera v. State, the trial court must afford McNulty at least one opportunity to amend his motion to allege these required factors.
[1] A defendant seeking post-conviction relief for ineffective assistance of counsel based on an uncounseled prior conviction must allege specific factors regarding the prior…
[2] Recent Florida Supreme Court precedent requires a defendant claiming ineffective assistance of counsel due to an uncounseled prior conviction to allege that the offense w…
Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“We believe that the recent decision of State v. Kelly, 999 So.2d 1029 (Fla.2008), modified Beach so that a defendant now has to allege (in addition to factors 2, 3, and 4) only that the offense was punishable by imprisonment, not that the offense was punishable by more than six months imprisonment or that he was actually imprisoned.”
Explains the modified legal standard for challenging uncounseled prior convictions under Kelly
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceIn April 2006, McNulty was charged with felony DUI and refusing to consent to testing. A jury found him guilty of felony DUI, and the court found him …
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Thomas McNulty appeals the summary denial of his Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850 motion which alleged ineffective assistance of counsel. McNulty raised several arguments below, only one of which we find necessitates remand.
In April 2006, McNulty was charged with felony DUI and refusing to consent to a breathalyzer/blood test. A jury found him guilty of Count I, the felony DUI, and the state presented a certified copy of McNulty’s driving record showing three prior convictions for DUI. Thereupon the court found McNulty guilty of felony DUI. McNulty pled nolo contendere to count II (refusal to consent to testing). He received a five-year sentence in the Department of Corrections for the felony DUI. On direct appeal his convictions were affirmed. McNulty v. State, 972 So.2d 197 (Fla. 4th DCA 2008).
Subsequently, McNulty filed a rule 3.850 motion for post conviction relief alleging that he received ineffective assistance of counsel (IAC) because his trial attorney failed to investigate whether the 1982 DUI, which was part of the basis for the felony DUI charge, was uncounseled and should not have been used to enhance his fourth DUI to a felony.
In response to an order to show cause issued by this court, the state argued, citing State v. Beach, 592 So.2d 237 (Fla.1992), that McNulty was required to allege under oath four factors to support his claim: 1) that the offense involved was punishable by more than six months of imprisonment or that the defendant was actually subjected to a term of imprisonment; 2) that the defendant was indigent and thus entitled to court appointed counsel; 3) that counsel was not appointed; and 4) that the right to counsel was not waived. We believe that the recent decision of State v. Kelly, 999 So.2d 1029 (Fla.2008), modified Beach so that a defendant now has to allege (in addition to factors 2, 3, and 4) only that the offense was punishable by imprisonment, not that the offense was punishable by more than six months imprisonment or that he was actually imprisoned. In other words, in Kelly the Florida Supreme Court ruled that indigent defendants have a right to counsel in all criminal prosecutions punishable by imprisonment, even misdemeanor prosecutions, unless the trial judge “opts out” by providing a written pretrial certification that the defendant will not be imprisoned for the charged offense.
Applying Kelly to this case,1 it is evident that McNulty alleged in his 3.850 motion only one of the four factors necessary to support a claim of IAC, that is, he alleged only that his trial attorney failed to investigate whether the 1982 DUI (which was part of the foundation for the felony DUI) was uncounseled. McNulty made no allegations that the offense was punishable by imprisonment; that he was indigent and entitled to court appointed counsel; *882and that he did not waive the right to counsel. Thus, he failed to allege the threshold requirements of Kelly. Nevertheless, in light of the Florida Supreme Court’s decision in Spera v. State, 971 So.2d 754 (Fla.2007) (trial court must allow a defendant at least one opportunity to correct a pleading deficiency in a first 3.850 motion), we direct the trial court to afford McNulty the opportunity to amend his motion to allege the necessary Kelly factors, if he can do so in good faith.2
Reversed and remanded for further proceedings.
GROSS, C.J., MAY and CIKLIN, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Authorities Cited
- Spera v. State, 971 So. 2d 754 (Fla. 2007)
- Witt v. State, 387 So. 2d 922 (Fla. 1980)
- Smiley v. State, 966 So. 2d 330 (Fla. 2007)
- State v. Beach, 592 So. 2d 237 (Fla. 1992)
- State v. Kelly, 999 So. 2d 1029 (Fla. 2008)