Opinion ID: 1905769
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: repudiation of plea bargain

Text: On March 31, 1976, appellant and Stekloff entered into a plea bargain with the Clay County State's Attorney. Under that agreement, appellant would plead guilty to one count of aiding and abetting the distribution of a controlled substance and would assist the Division of Criminal Investigation as an unpaid narcotics agent in securing six or eight good drug arrests. In return for this, the state would drop the original four count information against appellant, acquiesce in appellant's request for a suspended imposition of sentence, and fully inform the court of appellant's cooperation as a mitigating circumstance. By letter of June 11, 1976, the Clay County State's Attorney informed appellant that because he had completely failed to carry out the plea bargain, the state was repudiating the agreement. Immediately prior to trial, appellant withdrew his guilty plea and was arraigned on the four count information. During the trial, out of the hearing of the jury, appellant introduced evidence that he asserts showed a good faith attempt to perform his part of the bargain. Appellant contends that the trial court erred in allowing the state to unilaterally repudiate the plea bargain, thereby denying him due process of law under the rule of Santobello v. New York, 404 U.S. 257, 92 S.Ct. 495, 30 L.Ed.2d 427. The state responds that because appellant failed to demand compliance with the plea bargain before he withdrew his guilty plea and proceeded to trial, the trial court was not called upon to decide whether the state could unilaterally withdraw the bargain. Therefore, the state argues, the issue of under what circumstances specific enforcement, rather than withdrawal of a guilty plea, must be employed to remedy a breached plea agreement is not before this court. See Palermo v. Warden, 2 Cir., 545 F.2d 286. We conclude that the state's position is well taken. It is a well-established rule that the trial court must have been afforded an opportunity to rule on a point of law by proper motion or objection before we will entertain an argument based on the court's failure to so rule. State v. Gayton, 83 S.D. 141, 155 N.W.2d 919; State v. Kindvall, 86 S.D. 91, 191 N.W.2d 289; State v. Barr, S.D., 232 N.W.2d 257; State v. Miller, S.D., 248 N.W.2d 874. We see no reason to depart from that policy in this case. Santobello, supra, indicates that depending on the circumstances of the case, either specific performance or the opportunity to withdraw a plea will remedy a breached plea bargain. In this case, two months passed between the state's letter of repudiation and the trial, ample time for appellant to have moved the court for relief. Appellant nevertheless chose to withdraw his plea, a choice that went unopposed by the state. Cf. State v. Losieau, S.D., 266 N.W.2d 259. In the absence of a proper motion to compel the enforcement of the plea agreement, appellant will not be heard to complain on appeal that he was prejudiced by being permitted to withdraw his plea.