Case Name: STATE of Florida, Appellant, v. Hossain RAJAEE, Appellee
Court: Florida District Court of Appeal
Jurisdiction: Florida
Decision Date: 1999-11-19
Citations: 745 So. 2d 469
Docket Number: No. 98-3476
Parties: STATE of Florida, Appellant, v. Hossain RAJAEE, Appellee.
Judges: THOMPSON, J., concurring specially, with opinion.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 745
Pages: 469–473

Head Matter:
STATE of Florida, Appellant, v. Hossain RAJAEE, Appellee.
No. 98-3476.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fifth District.
Nov. 19, 1999.
Robert A. Butterworth, Attorney General, Tallahassee, and Robin A. Compton, Assistant Attorney General, Daytona Beach, for Appellant.
Jack R. Maro, Ocala, for Appellee.

Opinion:
HARRIS, J.
Rajaee trafficked in such a large quantity of cocaine that his penalty upon conviction would have been a minimum of fifteen years in prison. He entered into a plea agreement by which he was sentenced to four years in prison with probation to follow. Although Rajaee was born in Iran, and even though the court specifically advised him before plea that a conviction might subject him to deportation, he pled nolo contendere and, after a pre-sentence investigation, was sentenced according to the agreement.
Upon arriving at the Department of Corrections, Rajaee was contacted by INS concerning possible deportation. Rajaee then moved to withdraw his previous plea because he claims that he mistakenly believed at the time of his plea that he was an American citizen and that if deported to Iran he would be subject to execution.
Rajaee's burden in setting aside his plea is established by Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.170(i):
(l) Motion to Withdraw the Plea after sentencing.
A defendant who pleads guilty or nolo contendere without expressly reserving the right to appeal a legally dispositive issue may file a motion to withdraw the plea within thirty days after rendition of the sentence, but only wpon the grounds specified in Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure 9.U0(b)(2)(B)(i)-(v). (Emphasis added).
The only possible basis available under the referenced rule for Rajaee to invoke is that the plea was involuntary. Throughout the hearing, the judge made two points clear. First, that he believed that Rajaee entered the plea because it was such a good offer and that Rajaee believed that INS would simply leave him alone. It was only after the INS contact indicating that his gamble had gone south that Rajaee discovered his "mistake." Second, although not authorized by the rule as a basis for withdrawal of plea, the judge made it clear that even if there were no mistake he did not want Rajaee to be deported by INS to Iran. After very brief testimony, the judge set aside the plea, without setting forth his reasoning, .and the State appeals. We reverse.
Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.172(c)(8) requires that the judge inform the defendant that deportation may be a consequence of the plea if defendant is not a citizen. The rule does not require the judge to inquire as to whether the defendant is a citizen or to explain the requirements of becoming a citizen to a defendant. A defendant is put on notice that he should know, or if any doubt exists he should determine, his citizenship status before proceeding with the plea. No case has been cited to us which indicates that a mistake not caused by the court, defense counsel, law enforcement, or someone representing the state or not based on a misunderstanding of the plea agreement, the score sheet, or some document prepared by some governmental agent is sufficient to make a plea involuntary. In short, a mistake of some fact solely within the knowledge or control of the defendant has not been approved as a basis for withdrawing a plea. In Johnson v. State, 648 So.2d 263 (Fla. 5th DCA 1994), this court held:
Johnson's basis for seeking to withdraw his guilty plea in this case was that he was unaware of his own probationary status stemming from another criminal case at the time he pled guilty. Where the mistake or misunderstanding in entering a plea is attributable to the defendant, it is not error for the court to refuse to allow withdrawal of it.
Even assuming that a "mistake" relating to one's citizenship status, as opposed to a mistake relating to the consequence of a plea based on that status, is sufficient to make the plea "involuntary," the evidence presented in this case fails to establish even that a mistake was made. The court asked the defendant, "But are you a citizen or not?" The defendant responded, "Immigration, when they came after me that I'm not a citizen, Your Honor. They came to me in Marion County, then when I got to Lake Butler they came to tell me. And I said, T am a citizen. I have a child here. I've been here twenty years. My whole family is citizen.' " Perhaps it is overly technical, but this testimony does not prove a mistake concerning his belief that he was and is a citizen, but only that there is a disagreement as to his citizenship which must be determined by INS. Thus, the record does not support the basis for his motion.
Although both Rajaee and his counsel, for different reasons , predicted dire consequences if Rajaee were to be deported, defense counsel candidly admitted he had no evidence that he could offer as to what would happen to Rajaee upon deportation. While the harshness of the Iranian justice system is disturbing, it is not a problem to be addressed by our criminal court. If Rajaee is deported, it is because as a non-citizen he violated our drug laws. He should not be treated any differently in relation to our criminal justice system merely because of from whence he came. The possibility of harsh treatment upon deportation should be, and may well be, a consideration of INS.
REVERSED.
THOMPSON, J., concurring specially, with opinion.
W. SHARP, J., dissents, with opinion.
. Counsel based his prediction of dire consequences on the nature of Rajaee's conviction: drugs. Rajaee predicted harsh treatment because, "I was supposed to stay there and fight during the war, sir."