Case Name: STATE of Louisiana, Appellee, v. Tracy HILL, Appellant
Court: Louisiana Court of Appeal
Jurisdiction: Louisiana
Decision Date: 1998-05-13
Citations: 714 So. 2d 814
Docket Number: No. 30552-KA
Parties: STATE of Louisiana, Appellee, v. Tracy HILL, Appellant.
Judges: Before NORRIS, BROWN and PEATROSS, JJ.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 714
Pages: 814–818

Head Matter:
STATE of Louisiana, Appellee, v. Tracy HILL, Appellant.
No. 30552-KA.
Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Second Circuit.
May 13, 1998.
Opinion Clarifying Decision on Rehearing June 26, 1998.
John Michael Lawrence, Assistant Indigent Defender, Shreveport, for Appellant.
Richard Ieyoub, Attorney General, James M. Bullers, District Attorney, Whitley Graves, Assistant District Attorney, for Ap-pellee.
Before NORRIS, BROWN and PEATROSS, JJ.

Opinion:
IxNORRIS, Judge.
Originally indicted for aggravated rape, La. R.S. 14:42, Tracy Hill pled guilty to the reduced charge of sexual battery, R.S. 14:43.1. The District Court imposed the maximum sentence of 10 years at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation, suspension of sentence, or eligibility for good time, and denied a motion to reconsider. Hill now appeals his sentence as excessive. We note error patent in the Boykin proceedings. State v. Godejohn, 425 So.2d 750 (La.1983); State v. Watts, 550 So.2d 711 (La.App. 2 Cir.1989). Accordingly, we vacate the guilty plea, set aside the conviction and sentence, and remand the case for further proceedings.
At the Boykin hearing, the court advised Hill that his guilty plea to sexual battery carried a maximum sentence of 10 years at hard labor. The court did not advise him that any sentence imposed would be without benefit of parole, probation or suspension of sentence, and without eligibility for good time. The record does not show that anyone else advised him of this mandatory aspect of the sentence. R.S. 14:43.1 C.
Before entering a guilty plea, the defendant must be advised of, and must waive, his constitutionally guaranteed right to a jury trial, right of confrontation, and right against compulsory self-incrimination. Boykin v. Alabama, 395 U.S. 238, 89 S.Ct. 1709, 23 L.Ed.2d 274 (1969); State ex rel. Jackson v. Henderson, 260 La. 90, 255 So.2d 85 (1971). Moreover, the entry of a guilty plea must be knowing and voluntary on the defendant's part. State v. Nuccio, 454 So.2d 93 (La.1984); Kennedy v. Maggio, 725 F.2d 269 (5 Cir.1984). Advising the defendant of certain facts beyond the Boykin "triad of rights" bears on the knowing and voluntary nature of the plea. State ex rel. LaFleur v. Donnelly, 416 So.2d 82 (La.1982).
|2In LaFleur, the Supreme Court discussed the effect of a district court's failure to inform the defendant that a firearms sentence, R.S. 14:95.1, necessarily excluded probation, parole or suspension of sentence. The Court stated:
It is important to explain to the accused the elements of the offenses with which he is charged and the rights he is waiving by pleading guilty thereto. However, it is probably much more important to the defendant's decision (about whether to plead guilty) that he understand the maximum penalty exposure.
In this ease a detailed account of the possible sentences by the trial court could have prevented any misunderstanding with regard to parole eligibility on the firearms charge. A full explanation of the sentence provided for an offense by the legislature seems particularly important when, as part of the penalty of the offense, parole eligibility is denied, because the accused may be far more concerned about the possibilities for early release than any abstract right to confront his accusers at trial. (Citations omitted.)
The Supreme Court has never reversed LaFleur or retracted its rationale; however, it has on occasion stated that the Boykin "triad of rights" has not been expanded. See, e.g., State v. Nuccio, supra. Notably, the issue in Nuccio was not failure to advise the defendant that he could not get parole; rather, it was failure to advise that his guilty plea could be used as a basis for the filing of future multiple offender bills under R.S. 15:529.1. The court held that this failure did not vitiate the knowing and voluntary nature of the plea. The court did not disturb the principles of LaFleur.
This court has consistently followed La-Fleur and vacated the plea when the record shows that the defendant was not informed of the sentencing range and of the "without benefit" provision. See, e.g., State v. Smith, 513 So.2d 544 (La.App. 2 Cir.1987). Even when the District Court has properly explained the sentencing 13range and the "without benefit" provision, we have reiterated that this is required for a knowing, voluntary plea.
On certain occasions we have quoted the passage from State v. Nuccio, supra, to state that Boykin "triad of rights" has never been expanded. Notably, however, in all of these cases the "without benefit" provision was clearly set forth in the Boykin colloquy, either by the prosecutor or defense counsel. None of them involve what occurred in the instant case, viz., a total failure to advise the defendant that his sentence for sexual battery would be without benefit.
The legislature has recently acted to clarify the jurisprudence concerning the knowing and voluntary nature of guilty pleas by enacting La.C.Cr.P. art. 556.1. La. Aets.1997, No. 1061. This article provides, in pertinent part:
A. In any criminal ease, the court shall not accept a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, without first addressing the defendant personally in open court and in forming him of, and determining that he understands, all of the following:
(1) The nature of the charge to which the plea is offered, the mandatory minimum penalty provided by law, if any, and the maximum possible penalty provided by law.
According to the comments, art. 556.1 is intended to clarify the law by incorporating the essence of P.R.Cr.P. art. 11, which requires the court to advise the defendant of any mandatory minimum penalty, the maximum possible penalty, and "the effect of any special parole term." Article 556.1 became effective on August 15,1997, so obviously the District Court did not utilize it at the instant guilty plea, which occurred on March 11, 1997. See State v. Newman, 97-797 (La.App. 3 Cir. 1/28/98), 707 So.2d 122. However, the article is interpretive, 14embracing LaFleur, swpra, and validating this court's analysis in State v. Smith, supra, and its progeny. Thus the article informs and guides our consideration of the instant case.
In light of these considerations we conclude that the District Court's failure to advise Hill that his maximum 10-year sentence must be "without benefit" is reversible error. State ex rel. LaFleur v. Donnelly, supra, State v. Smith, supra, and La.C.Cr.P. art. 556.1. The guilty plea is therefore vacated, the conviction and sentence set aside, and the case remanded for further proceedings.
GUILTY PLEA VACATED; CONVICTION AND SENTENCE SET ASIDE; CASE REMANDED.
BROWN, J., dissents with reasons.
.See also State v. Williams, 554 So.2d 139 (La.App. 2 Cir.1989); State v. Carter, 619 So.2d 82 (La.App. 2 Cir.1993); State v. Hall, 616 So.2d 290 (La.App. 2 Cir.1993); State v. Garth, 622 So.2d 1189 (La.App. 2 Cir.1993); State v. Monroe, 25,825 (La.App. 2 Cir. 3/30/94), 635 So.2d 481; State v. Hodges, 26,171 (La.App. 2 Cir. 8/17/94), 641 So.2d 728; State v. Powell, 28,173 (La.App. 2 Cir. 5/8/96), 674 So.2d 1057.
. See, e.g., State v. Anderson, 27,356 (La.App. 2 Cir. 9/27/95), 661 So.2d 542; State v. Jones, 28,929 (La.App. 2 Cir. 4/2/97), 691 So.2d 858.
. See, e.g., State v. Bradford, 627 So.2d 781 (La.App. 2 Cir.1993), writ denied 94-0006 (La.4/22/94), 637 So.2d 154; State v. McGee, 30,329 (La.App. 2 Cir. 7/30/97), 698 So.2d 69; State v. Nicholas, 30,104 (La.App. 2 Cir. 12/10/97), 704 So.2d 930.