Opinion ID: 888583
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Whether the District Court Rejected the Plea Agreement

Text: ¶ 16 In this case, the parties' plea agreement was one in which the State agreed to a specific sentence as the appropriate disposition of the case. See § 46-12-211(1)(b), MCA. The transcript of the sentencing hearing reflects that the court accepted the plea agreement: THE COURT: Yes. And for whatever it's worth, since I'm not going to let you withdraw your guilty plea [pursuant to a prior motion to withdraw guilty plea not at issue here], I will follow the plea agreement you entered into. ¶ 17 Under § 46-12-211(3), MCA, if the court accepts a plea agreement, the court shall inform the defendant that it will embody in the judgment and sentence the disposition provided for in the plea agreement. Here, although the court did not explicitly inform Stephenson as required by the statute, this omission did not lessen the court's obligation to embody in the judgment and sentence the disposition provided for in the plea agreement. ¶ 18 Under § 46-12-211(4), MCA, if the court rejects a plea agreement of the type at issue here (one under § 46-12-211(1)(b), MCA), the court shall, on the record, do the following: inform the parties of this fact and advise the defendant that the court is not bound by the plea agreement, afford the defendant an opportunity to withdraw the plea, and advise the defendant that if the defendant persists in the guilty or nolo contendere plea, the disposition of the case may be less favorable to the defendant than that contemplated by the plea agreement. Here, nothing in the transcript of the sentencing hearing indicates that the court rejected the plea agreement or provided Stephenson the notice required by § 46-12-211(4), MCA. ¶ 19 Stephenson's argument, therefore, is as follows. First, he argues that the plea agreement did not contemplate the imposition of any fines and that there is no statutory authority for an $85 surcharge fee payable to the community service program. Thus, by imposing the $85 fee/surcharge, the District Court effectively rejected the agreement. Stephenson maintains that under § 46-12-211(4), MCA, he was entitled to withdraw his guilty plea. Second, Stephenson argues that the prosecutor did not support the plea agreement and that he, therefore, should have been allowed to withdraw his guilty plea and proceed to trial. See State v. Munoz, 2001 MT 85, 305 Mont. 139, 23 P.3d 922. ¶ 20 We are not persuaded on the record before us that the District Court rejected the plea agreement thus entitling Stephenson to withdraw his plea. The transcript of the sentencing hearing reflects clearly that the court accepted the plea agreement. Furthermore, Stephenson agreed in the plea agreement to the imposition of any probation conditions recommended by the probation/parole officer in the PSI. The $85 fine/surcharge payable to the community service program was recommended in the PSI, and the court imposed that condition. ¶ 21 Accordingly, we do not agree with Stephenson's contention that the District Court rejected the plea agreement. Nor do we agree with Stephenson that the State failed to support the plea agreement. The critical issues, therefore, are whether requiring the payment of an $85 fine/surcharge to the community service program is lawful and, if it is not, whether that fact entitles Stephenson to withdraw his guilty plea. We turn, then, to the legality of the $85 fine/surcharge.