Opinion ID: 885035
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Adequacy of court's interrogation

Text: ¶ 18 As to the first factor, the adequacy of the court's interrogation regarding the defendant's understanding of the consequences of the plea, Sanders asserts two deficiencies. First, Sanders argues that the court failed to adequately inquire into whether Sanders was under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time he entered his guilty plea. He maintains that the court could not rely on the waiver of rights form he signed, which included a statement that he was not under the influence of alcohol or drugs, because the court was required to ask about drug or alcohol use at the hearing in order to accurately determine competency. Sanders further states that had the court made the proper inquiry, it would have discovered that he was taking Prozac, which allegedly impairs judgment, thinking and motor skills. But the State points out that Sanders did not present this claim to the District Court as a basis for allowing him to withdraw his guilty plea. It contends that we should therefore decline to review Sanders' claim for the first time on appeal. ¶ 19 We agree with the State. The record reveals that Sanders did not present this argument to the District Court when he filed his motion to withdraw his plea of guilty. It is well-settled that issues and claims of error not properly preserved in the trial court are barred from appellate review. Section 46-20-701, MCA. This Court does not address issues or theories raised for the first time on appeal. Schaff, ¶ 26. Sanders has not identified any exception to that rule that would apply here. Therefore, we decline to address this argument on the merits. ¶ 20 Sanders contends that the court's interrogation was deficient in a second respect. He argues that the court was not thorough enough in its inquiry to cure confusion created by the prosecutor and his own counsel as to whether there were any lesser included offenses of the charge to which he pled guilty. The failure of the court to identify any possible lesser included offenses unfairly forced him to understand the consequences of a complex legal issue in the abstract. Because he was not specifically informed that there were, in fact, lesser included offenses, his plea was not made intelligently. The State counters that the District Court's colloquy was adequate, because the court informed Sanders that to the extent there were lesser included offenses, by pleading guilty he waived the opportunity to convince a jury to convict on one of those lesser offenses. ¶ 21 We agree with Sanders. The fact that the court informed Sanders that there may be lesser included offenses was insufficient. As we pointed out, it is a fundamental principle that a guilty plea must be an intelligent choice among the alternative courses of action open to the defendant. Bowley, 282 Mont. at 304, 938 P.2d at 595 (citation omitted). Additionally, this Court has stated that when a guilty plea is based upon a fundamental mistake or misunderstanding as to its consequences, the court may allow the defendant to withdraw the guilty plea. Benjamin v. McCormick (1990), 243 Mont. 252, 256, 792 P.2d 7, 10. ¶ 22 To make an intelligent choice as to whether to plead guilty, a defendant is entitled to know the precise nature of his alternatives. Knowing in the abstract that there may be potential lesser included offenses does not give a defendant the necessary information to intelligently weigh his options. Indeed, if a defendant was not made aware of the lesser included offenses, how could the defendant ever evaluate whether he thinks he could convince a jury that he was guilty of those offenses? ¶ 23 The problem was compounded in this case, because Sanders was incorrectly informed that there were no lesser included offenses. The waiver of rights section of the agreement stated that the lesser included offenses section was not applicable to him; his own counsel told him there were no lesser included offenses; and the prosecutor told the court that there were no lesser included offenses. The court did not contradict or correct any of this information. To make an intelligent choice and fully appreciate the consequences of his plea, Sanders was entitled to know whether, in fact, there were lesser included offenses, and if so, what those offenses were. Consequently, we conclude that this first factor, the adequacy of the court's interrogation regarding the defendant's understanding of the consequences of the plea, weighs in Sanders' favor.