RANCES GONZALEZ-CASTRO, APPELLANT,
v.
THE STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE

Fla. 3d DCA | 2009-07-08
No. 3D08-925
Before CORTINAS, ROTHENBERG, and LAGOA, JJ.
22 So. 3d 94 Florida District Court of Appeal, Third District (2009) Positive Treatment
Cited by 1 case

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Synopsis

Gonzalez-Castro appealed the denial of his motion to withdraw a guilty plea for failing to register as a sex offender, claiming he was under a misimpression about his sentence length. The court affirmed the trial court's denial, finding the plea transcript conclusively refuted his claims and that he failed to allege any conflict with counsel warranting appointment of conflict-free counsel.


Holding

The trial court correctly denied both motions. The defendant's motion to withdraw the plea failed to allege any conflict between him and his attorney, so appointment of conflict-free counsel was properly denied. The plea transcript conclusively refuted the defendant's claim that he was under a misimpression about his sentence, as he acknowledged understanding the 36-month cap before and after the trial court's explanations.


Headnotes

[1] A motion to withdraw a guilty plea based on a "misimpression" of the sentence requires an allegation that counsel was the source of the misimpression or that counsel coer…

[2] A trial court may summarily deny a motion to withdraw a guilty plea when the plea transcript conclusively refutes the defendant's claims regarding the basis for the plea.

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Key Quotes

“Although the defendant alleges in his motion to withdraw his plea that he was under the 'misimpression' that he would receive a sentence of 19.05 months in prison, he does not directly or indirectly assert that his counsel was the source of his 'misimpression.'”

Establishes that the defendant's failure to allege counsel as the source of the misimpression prevented the trial court from erring in denying conflict-free counsel.

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Facts & Procedural History

Gonzalez-Castro entered a guilty plea to failing to properly register as a sex offender and was sentenced to 30 months in prison. He filed a motion to…

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Opinion of the Court
ROTHENBERG, Judge.

ROTHENBERG, Judge.

The defendant, Ranees Gonzalez-Castro, entered a guilty plea to the charge of failing to properly register as a sex offender, and thereafter, the trial court sentenced him to thirty months in state prison. Under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.170(i), the defendant filed a timely motion to withdraw his plea, asserting that he was under the “misim-pression” that he would receive a sentence of 19.05 months in prison, and but for this “misimpression,” he would not *95have entered into the plea. The defendant also filed a motion to appoint conflict-free counsel to assist him in his motion to withdraw his plea. Following a non-evidentiary hearing, the trial court denied both motions based on the record. This appeal ensued.

The defendant contends that the trial court erred in denying his motion to appoint conflict-free counsel where his motion to withdraw his plea asserted a facially valid claim that a conflict existed between him and his counsel. We disagree.

Although the defendant alleges in his motion to withdraw his plea that he was under the “misimpression” that he would receive a sentence of 19.05 months in prison, he does not directly or indirectly assert that his counsel was the source of his “misimpression.” Moreover, he does not claim that he was coerced by counsel or that counsel misadvised him. Cf. Searcy v. State, 971 So.2d 1008, 1012 (Fla. 3d DCA 2008) (reversing the trial court’s summary denial of a motion to withdraw plea and remanding for appointment of conflict-free counsel where defendant’s motion to withdraw plea “indirectly” alleged that “his plea was involuntary because it was based in part on counsel’s representation that he would be able to get him a longer furlough if he took the plea”). Because the defendant’s motion to withdraw his plea fails to allege any conflict between him and his attorney, we find that the trial court correctly denied the defendant’s motion to appoint conflict-free counsel.

The defendant also challenges the trial court’s summary denial of his motion to withdraw his plea. As the record conclusively refutes the defendant’s claim, we affirm.

In the instant case, the defendant entered into a written plea agreement acknowledging, in part, that: he was not pressured into accepting the plea; he was not promised anything except that his sentence would not exceed thirty-six months in state prison and he would be required to pay certain costs; the statutory maximum for the offense is five years; and he was entering into the plea with his own free will.

Although the plea transcript indicates that the defendant initially stated that it was his understanding that he would be sentenced to approximately nineteen months, the transcript also reflects that trial court corrected the defendant and explained that under the plea agreement, the trial court could sentence him up to thirty-six months. After the trial court explained the clear terms of the plea agreement to the defendant, the defendant acknowledged that he understood that the trial court could sentence him up to thirty-six months in prison, he had not been promised anything by anyone, and he was not threatened to enter into the plea. The plea transcript also demonstrates that pri- or to accepting the defendant’s plea, the trial court once again confirmed that the defendant understood that he could be sentenced up to thirty-six months, no one had promised him that he would serve less than thirty-six months, and he was not forced to enter the plea.

THE COURT: And again, do you understand by the terms of the plea that you could be sentenced to 36 months in prison?
THE DEFENDANT: I understand.
THE COURT: And again, has anybody promised you that you would serve anything less than that or forced you in any way to enter a plea today?
THE DEFENDANT: No.

Therefore, as the plea transcript conclusively refutes the defendant’s claim that he was under the “misimpression” that he would be sentenced to approximately nine*96teen months in prison and that he would not have entered into the plea absent the “misimpression,” we affirm the trial court’s summary denial of the motion to withdraw plea. See State v. Leroux, 689 So.2d 235, 236 (Fla.1996) (holding that in cases where the record does not conclusively rebut a cognizable claim, a hearing is necessary to determine the merits of the defendant’s claim).

Affirmed.


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Cited By

  • …r sentence. However, Petitioner is not entitled to federal habeas relief or an evidentiary hearing, because his claims are conclusively refuted by the written plea agreement and his sworn statements at the plea hearing. See Gonzalez-Castro v. State, 22 So. 3d 94, 95– 96 (Fla. 3d DCA 2009)("[A]s the plea transcript conclusively refutes the defendant's claim that he was under the 'misimpression' that he would be sentenced to approximately nineteen months in prison and that he would not have entered into the p…

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