Source: https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/384/1/
Timestamp: 2019-04-23 02:05:46+00:00

Document:
Petitioner, who had been indicted for forgery and other offenses, waived a jury trial. Though petitioner insisted that he was "in no way . . . pleading guilty," his court-appointed counsel consented to a "prima facie" trial which is a procedures -- conceded by the trial court to be the practical equivalent of a guilty plea -- whereby the State makes only a prima facie showing of guilt and the defense does not offer evidence or cross-examine witnesses. After hearing some evidence, including an out-of-court alleged confession of a codefendant, the trial court adjudged petitioner guilty and sentenced him. Petitioner brought this habeas corpus action in the Ohio Supreme Court claiming denial of his right under the Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments to confront and cross-examine witnesses. That court upheld the conviction on the ground that petitioner had knowingly waived such right by his counsel's consent to the prima facie trial.
Held: Petitioner's constitutional right to plead not guilty and to have a trial where he could confront and cross-examine adversary witnesses could not be waived by his counsel without petitioner's consent. Pp. 347 U. S. 5-8.
2 Ohio St.2d 36, 205 N.E.2d 911, reversed and remanded.
"petitioner, although he did not plead guilty, agreed that all the state had to prove was a prima facie case, that he would not contest it, and that there would be no cross-examination of witnesses."
"In open court, while represented by counsel, petitioner agreed that, although he would not plead guilty, he would not contest the state's case or cross-examine its witnesses, but would require only that the state prove each of the essential elements of the crime."
2 Ohio St.2d 36, 40, 205 N.E.2d 911, 914. Upon this basis, the State Supreme Court rejected petitioner's constitutional contentions and ordered him remanded to custody. 2 Ohio St.2d 36, 205 N.E.2d 911. We granted certiorari to determine whether Ohio denied petitioner's constitutional right to be confronted with and to cross-examine the witnesses against him. Brookhart v. Ohio, 382 U.S. 810.
"[I]f there was here a denial of cross-examination without waiver, it would be constitutional error of the first magnitude, and no amount of showing of want of prejudice would cure it."
"is 'to be enforced against the States under the Fourteenth Amendment according to the same standards that protect those personal rights against federal encroachment.' Malloy v. Hogan, supra, at 378 U. S. 10"
See also Douglas v. Alabama, 380 U. S. 415. It follows that, unless petitioner did actually waive his right to be confronted with and to cross-examine these witnesses, his federally guaranteed constitutional rights have been denied in two ways. In the first place, he was denied the right to cross-examine at all any witnesses who testified against him. In the second place, there was introduced as evidence against him an alleged confession, made out of court by one of his codefendants, Mitchell, who did not testify in court, and petitioner was therefore denied any opportunity whatever to confront and cross-examine the witness who made this very damaging statement. We therefore pass on to the question of waiver.
The question of a waiver of a federally guaranteed constitutional right is, of course, a federal question controlled by federal law. There is a presumption against the waiver of constitutional rights, see, e.g., Glasser v. United States, 315 U. S. 60, 315 U. S. 70-71, and, for a waiver to be effective, it must be clearly established that there was "an intentional relinquishment or abandonment of a known right or privilege." Johnson v. Zerbst, 304 U. S. 458, 304 U. S. 464.
"MR. ERGAZOS [petitioner's lawyer]: That[']s correct, Your Honor."
"MR. ERGAZOS: The only thing is, Your Honor, this matter is before the court on a prima facie case."
"THE COURT: There being no . . . going to be no cross-examination of the witnesses, so the court will know and the State can't be taken by surprise, the court doesn't want to be fooled and have your client change his mind half way through the trial and really contest it, the State has a contest, we want to know, in fairness to them, so they can put on complete proof."
connection with this crime, I would like to reserve the right to cross-examine at that time."
"THE COURT: That is raising another . . . that is putting the State on the spot, and the court on the spot; I won't find him guilty if the evidence is substantial."
"MR. ERGAZOS: We have a jury question in the court, undoubtedly there will be . . ."
"THE COURT: Ordinarily in a prima facie case . . . the prima facie case is where the defendant, not technically or legally, in effect admits his guilt and wants the State to prove it."
"MR. ERGAZOS: That is correct."
"THE COURT: And the court knowing that and the Prosecutor knowing that, instead of having a half a dozen witness on one point, they only have one, because they understand there will be no contest."
"A [Brookhart] I would like to point out in no way am I pleading guilty to this charge."
"THE COURT: If you want to stand trial, we will give you a jury trial."
"A I have been incarcerated now for the last eighteen months in the county jail."
"THE COURT: You don't get credit for that."
"A For over two months, my nerves have been . . . I couldn't stand it out there any longer, I would like to be tried by this court."
"THE COURT: Make up your mind whether you require a prima facie case or a complete trial of it."
"MR. ERGAZOS: Prima facie, Your Honor, is all we are interested in."
open court to plead not guilty [Footnote 5] and enter in the name of his client another plea -- whatever the label -- which would shut off the defendant's constitutional right to confront and cross-examine the witnesses against him, which he would have an opportunity to do under a plea of not guilty. Since we hold that petitioner neither personally waived his right nor acquiesced in his lawyer's attempted waiver, the judgment of the Supreme Court of Ohio must be, and is, reversed, and the case is remanded to that court for further proceedings not inconsistent with this opinion.
Mitchell pleaded guilty after being indicted with petitioner, was sentenced to an Ohio state reformatory, and, although in the reformatory at the time of petitioner's trial, was not called to testify in person.
The petition also charged that Brookhart had not been given adequate notice of the charges upon which he was tried because the indictment charging him with forgery and uttering forged instruments was amended at trial. And, in this Court, petitioner attacks his convictions on several other constitutional grounds. We find it unnecessary to decide any of the additional contentions set out in this note.
When constitutional rights turn on the resolution of a factual dispute, we are duty bound to make an independent examination of the evidence in the record. See, e.g., Edwards v. South Carolina, 372 U. S. 229, 372 U. S. 235; Blackburn v. Alabama, 361 U. S. 199, 361 U. S. 205, n. 5.
Compare Rideau v. Louisiana, 373 U. S. 723, 373 U. S. 726.
I do not find the issue in this case as straightforward as does the Court. If the record were susceptible only of the reading given it by the Court, I would concur in the judgment. However, for me, this case presents problems of two sorts.
the procedure agreed to in this instance involved so significant a surrender of the rights normally incident to a trial that it amounted almost to a plea of guilty or nolo contendere. And I do not believe that, under the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, such a plea may be entered by counsel over his client's protest.
"agreed that all the state had to prove was a prima facie case, that he would not contest it, and that there would be no cross-examination of witnesses."
Brookhart v. Haskins, 2 Ohio St.2d 36, 38, 205 N.E.2d 911, 913. This Court, after an independent examination of the relevant portion of the same record, reprinted ante, pp. 384 U. S. 5-6, finds that petitioner "did not intelligently and knowingly agree to be tried in a proceeding which was the equivalent of a guilty plea. . . ." Ante, p. 384 U. S. 7.
question can be satisfactorily resolved solely on the existing record. I would therefore vacate this judgment and remand the case for a hearing under appropriate state procedures to determine whether petitioner did, in fact, knowingly and freely choose to have his guilt determined in this type of trial. Failing the availability of such proceedings in the state courts, the avenue of federal habeas corpus would then be open to petitioner for determination of that issue.
"There is no statutory plea of nolo contendere in Ohio in felony cases; therefore, when one is charged with a crime which he knows that he cannot successfully defend, but a plea of guilty will subject him to a penalty in a civil suit arising out of the same factual situation, he is without recourse to a plea of nolo contendere as is permitted in federal courts and certain other state courts. T o circumvent this difficulty, some Ohio courts have allowed, as was done here, the accused to enter a plea of not guilty, and, by arrangement, require the prosecution to prove only a prima facie case."
Brief, at 44-45, note 41.

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