Opinion ID: 759248
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Validity of State-Court Guilty Plea

Text: 122
123 As we have mentioned, Walker pleaded guilty in the Court of Common Pleas of Mahoning County, Ohio, on June 22, 1992, to the state-law offense of aggravated trafficking in drugs and possession of criminal tools. At the guilty-plea hearing, Walker was represented by attorney Michael Morley. 124 Walker now argues that this conviction was constitutionally defective, and therefore cannot be a predicate for the imposition of the statutory mandatory sentence. Specifically, he contends that his plea was neither knowing nor voluntary. In considering and ultimately rejecting Walker's challenge to the constitutionality of this conviction, the district court found as follows:A Plea Form was submitted to Walker during the change of plea hearing which he completed and signed. The judge personally addressed Walker and explained the sentence he could receive for the entry of a guilty plea; inquired as to whether he was coerced; whether the elements of the offense were explained to him by counsel and that he was entitled to a confront [sic] witnesses against him during a trial by jury. Walker was asked by the judge whether he understood everything on the Plea Form to which he replied Yes, Your Honor. [The trial judge] also inquired whether he had any questions, to which Walker replied, No, Sir. 125 The district court further found that [t]he plea hearing transcript reveals that the court inquired as to whether Walker read and understood the plea form before he signed it. Walker unequivocally stated ... that Morley went over the plea form with him and that he understood the elements of the charge. The court also found as follows: 126 On July 24, 1995, Michael Morley testified before this Court during an evidentiary sentencing hearing that he had counseled Walker concerning [his guilty plea]. Morley testified that he advised Walker that the State had a strong case against him and that he would try to have the charges reduced so they would be probationable. Morley further testified that Walker is a bright young man, and that he fully understood his options before entering guilty pleas. Morley stated that he went over the agreement with Walker line by line until Walker understood the form completely. 127 The district court rejected as not credible Walker's testimony that he did not wish to enter a guilty plea, that he advised Morley that he wanted to go to trial, and that Morley did not go over the Plea Form with him, but merely told him where to sign it. The court noted, however, that Walker and Morley did agree on one point: Walker is a bright young man. 128
129 Walker here criticizes the state court judge who took the guilty plea for failing to inquire into Walker's educational level or whether he was under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Further, Walker argues, his answers during the colloquy were simply, Yes, your Honor, without further elaboration, and therefore, they provide an insufficient basis for concluding that his plea was knowing and voluntary. Finally, he complains that the state court did not establish a factual basis for the plea, and did not identify the elements of the offense. 130 Under 21 U.S.C. § 851(c), a defendant subject to enhanced sentencing on the basis of a prior conviction is permitted to challenge the constitutionality of that conviction: 131 (1) If the person denies any allegation of the information of prior conviction, or claims that any conviction alleged is invalid, he shall file a written response to the information.... The court shall hold a hearing to determine any issues raised by the response which would except the person from increased punishment.... The hearing shall be before the court without a jury and either party may introduce evidence. Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, the United States attorney shall have the burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt on any issue of fact. At the request of either party, the court shall enter findings of fact and conclusions of law. 132 (2) A person claiming that a conviction alleged in the information was obtained in violation of the Constitution of the United States shall set forth his claim, and the factual basis therefor, with particularity in his response to the information. The person shall have the burden of proof by a preponderance of the evidence on any issue of fact raised by the response. 133 21 U.S.C. § 851(c). 134 It is well-established that [o]nce the government establishes the fact of a prior conviction based upon a guilty plea, the defendant must prove the invalidity of the conviction by a preponderance of the evidence. United States v. Barlow, 17 F.3d 85, 89 (5th Cir.1994) (citing Parke v. Raley, 506 U.S. 20, 32-34, 113 S.Ct. 517, 525, 121 L.Ed.2d 391 (1992)); see 21 U.S.C. § 851(c)(2). Thus, the district court's conclusion that a plea is voluntary is to some degree a factual finding, subject to review for clear error. See Barlow, 17 F.3d at 89; Dorrough v. United States, 385 F.2d 887, 893 (5th Cir.1967); see also United States v. Mims, 928 F.2d 310, 311 (9th Cir.1991). Obviously, however, the ultimate question whether a plea was voluntary requires a legal conclusion, one reached by applying legal rules to facts. United States v. Wildes, 910 F.2d 1484, 1486 (7th Cir.1990). Our review of this ultimate question is, therefore, de novo. See United States v. Bushert, 997 F.2d 1343,1352 (11th Cir.1993); see also Sanchez v. United States, 50 F.3d 1448, 1454 (9th Cir.1995). 135 There is no requirement that in order to rely on a defendant's answers in a guilty-plea colloquy to conclude that the defendant pleaded guilty knowingly and voluntarily, those answers must be lengthy and all-encompassing; a straightforward and simple Yes, your Honor is sufficient to bind a defendant to its consequences. Cf. Blackledge v. Allison, 431 U.S. 63, 73-74, 97 S.Ct. 1621, 52 L.Ed.2d 136 (1977). The defendant simply has not presented sufficient evidence to prove by a preponderance that his plea was other than knowing and voluntarily; he cannot overcome his affirmations at the plea hearing that his counsel had informed him of the elements of the crime, and that he understood his rights. While it is true that the state court proceedings did not set forth a factual basis for the plea, that is not constitutionally required; further, the plea form that Walker affirmed he understood recited the elements. Walker has not presented anything to lead this court to believe that a factual basis was actually lacking; there is no reason to suspect, that is, that he was not pleading guilty for any reason other than that he actually was guilty. 136 We conclude, therefore, that there is nothing constitutionally infirm about the state-court conviction following his guilty plea to aggravated trafficking, and there was no constitutional bar to the district court's use of the conviction as a predicate under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b).