Case Name: PEOPLE v. WEST
Court: Michigan Court of Appeals
Jurisdiction: Michigan
Decision Date: 1982-02-02
Citations: 113 Mich. App. 1
Docket Number: Docket No. 51481
Parties: PEOPLE v WEST
Judges: Before: Danhof, C.J., and Bronson and M. J. Kelly, JJ.
Reporter: Michigan appeals reports; cases decided in the Michigan Court of Appeals.
Volume: 113
Pages: 1–11

Head Matter:
PEOPLE v WEST
Docket No. 51481.
Submitted September 17, 1981, at Lansing.
Decided February 2, 1982.
Leave to appeal applied for.
Clifford G. West pled guilty to armed robbery, Saginaw Circuit Court, Fred J. Borchard, J. He appeals, alleging that the trial court erred in failing to inform him of the mandatory minimum sentence prior to accepting his plea. Held:
M. J. Kelly, J., would hold that the phrase "any term of years” in the armed robbery statute should be interpreted as imposing a mandatory minimum sentence of a year and a day upon conviction, and that the trial court erred in failing to inform the defendant of the maximum and mandatory minimum sentence consequences prior to accepting his plea, thereby requiring reversal, notwithstanding the fact that the error was harmless and no miscarriage of justice resulted.
Bronson, J., concurred. Additionally, he would note that the phrase "any term of years” should be construed to impose a minimum sentence of one year for certain crimes. He would hold that the court rule requiring that a defendant be informed of any mandatory minimum sentence before his guilty plea is accepted applies even though the sentence imposed could be served in a county jail rather than a state prison. He would reverse.
Reversed.
Danhof, C.J., dissented. He would hold that there is no mandatory minimum sentence for armed robbery, and thus the trial court was not required to inform the defendant of the fact prior to accepting his guilty plea. He would affirm.
References for Points in Headnotes
21 Am Jur 2d, Criminal Law §§ 473, 476.
Construction and application of Rule 11(c) of Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, as amended in 1975, requiring court to give certain advice to defendant before accepting plea of guilty or nolo contendere. 41 ALR Fed 874.
Court’s duty to advise or admonish accused as to consequences of plea of guilty, or to determine that he is advised thereof. 97 ALR2d 616.
21 Am Jur 2d, Criminal Law § 591.
21 Am Jur 2d, Criminal Law § 607.
Opinion op M. J. Kelly, J.
1. Criminal Law — Guilty Pleas — Sentencing — Appeal.
A trial court must inform a criminal defendant of any mandatory minimum sentence for his offense prior to accepting his plea of guilty or nolo contendere; the court need not inform the defendant of all the sentencing consequences but only the maximum and any mandatory minimum; failure to so inform the defendant constitutes error requiring reversal on appeal even where the record reveals that the error was harmless and no miscarriage of justice occurred (MCL 769.26; MSA 28.1096, GCR 1963, 529.1, 785.7[1]).
2. Robbery — Armed Robbery — Guilty Pleas — Sentencing — Words and Phrases.
The phrase "any term of years” in the armed robbery statute may be construed to impose a minimum sentence of a year and a day upon conviction, and a trial court which informs a defendant who pleads guilty to armed robbery that the sentence mandated by statute is life or any term of years before accepting the plea complies with the court rule requiring that a defendant be informed of any mandatory minimum sentence prior to acceptance of his guilty plea (MCL 750.529; MSA 28.797, GCR 1963, 785.7[l][d]).
Concurrence by Bronson, J.
3. Criminal Law — Guilty Pleas — Sentencing — Words and • Phrases.
The phrase "any term of years” as used to describe the sentence consequences of certain crimes specified in the Penal Code should be interpreted to mandate a minimum sentence of one year, and a person convicted of any of such crimes may be sentenced to a county jail where the minimum sentence is imposed or to a state prison where the minimum sentence plus one day or more is imposed; however, because a trial court is required to inform a criminal defendant of any mandatory minimum prison sentence before accepting the defendant’s guilty plea, it must inform the defendant that the minimum possible sentence is any term of years even where the sentence would be served in a county jail (GCR 1963, 785.7[l][dj).
Dissent by Danhof, C. J.
4. Robbery — Armed Robbery — Guilty Pleas — Sentencing.
No minimum sentence is mandated upon conviction of armed robbery, and thus a trial court is not required to inform a criminal defendant of any mandatory minimum sentence prior to accepting his guilty plea; the trial court need only inform the defendant of the maximum sentence and that probation is precluded (MCL 750.529; MSA 28.797, GCR 1963, 785.7[l][b], [d], m
Frank J. Kelley, Attorney General, Robert A. Derengoski, Solicitor General, Robert L. Kaczmarek, Prosecuting Attorney, and Kay F. Pearson, Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, for the people.
Nora J. Pasman, Assistant State Appellate Defender, for defendant on appeal.
Before: Danhof, C.J., and Bronson and M. J. Kelly, JJ.

Opinion:
M. J. Kelly, J.
On November 26, 1979, defendant, Clifford West, pled guilty to one count of armed robbery, MCL 750.529; MSA 28.797. He was sentenced to between 5 and 15 years imprisonment on February 1, 1980. Defendant appeals, Claiming that the trial court failed to comply with GCR 1963, 785.7(l)(d) when it failed to inform him of the mandatory minimum prison sentence.
GCR 1963, 785.7(l)(d) requires that the trial court inform a defendant of the mandatory minimum prison sentence when accepting a guilty plea from the defendant. GCR 1963, 785.7(1) does not require the judge to inform the defendant of all the sentencing consequences but only the maximum sentence and any mandatory minimum. Guilty Plea Cases, 395 Mich 96, 118; 235 NW2d 132 (1975), cert den 429 US 1108; 97 S Ct 1142; 51 L Ed 2d 561 (1977). Failure to give the defendant this information requires reversal. Id., 118, People v Jones, 410 Mich 407, 412; 301 NW2d 822 (1981).
In this case, defendant pled guilty to armed robbery, MCL 750.529; MSA 28.797. The statute provides that a defendant found guilty of armed robbery will be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for life or for any term of years. Defendant argues that the provision requiring imprisonment for any term of years is a mandatory minimum sentence and that the trial court's failure to inform defendant of the minimum sentence requires reversal. The prosecutor counters by arguing that MCL 750.529; MSA 28.797 does not provide for a mandatory minimum sentence. Far too much has been written by our Court on this matter, and I would much prefer that the harmless error rule be invoked. For the latest expression contrary to Judge Bronson's rationale see People v Taylor, 112 Mich App 94; 315 NW2d 202 (1981). I have expressed myself in People v Harper, 83 Mich App 390, 399; 269 NW2d 470 (1978), lv den 406 Mich 1021 (1981), by interpreting the phrase "any term of years" as imposing a minimum sentence of a year and a day upon a defendant convicted of armed robbery. But that decision also holds that a trial court complies with the requirements of GCR 1963, 785.7(1)(d) when it informs the defendant that his guilty plea will require imprisonment for life or any term of years. Here, the trial court failed to comply. However, it was sheer inadvertence and ought to be called harmless error. I do not think the Supreme Court has given us that option in Jones, supra, and I therefore reluctantly vote to reverse. I do so expressly finding harmless error under GCR 1963, 529.1, and I find no miscarriage of justice under MCL 769.26; MSA 28.1096, but I feel that we are mandated to follow the Supreme Court's opinion in Jones which allows for no mistakes.
Reversed.