Opinion ID: 161898
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Fields's Appeals

Text: 18 Fields timely filed a motion to withdraw his plea on April 15, 1994. On May 13, 1994, Judge Gullet held a hearing on this motion, at which Burton and Wilson testified. 19 When asked whether she forced Fields to plead guilty, Burton replied, No, I just think I misinformed him. I think I misinterpreted and I misinformed my client. She reluctantly admitted that her advice to Fields was a tactical decision, based on her belief that he had a better chance of avoiding the death penalty if he pled guilty. When Wilson was asked whether Fields pled voluntarily, he said, We told Mr. Fields that the best way to beat the death penalty was to blind plea. That we thought we had a wink and a nod. Armed with that, Mr. Fields, yes, he knowingly and voluntarily entered his plea. Wilson testified that they strongly urged Fields to accept the blind plea but that they made it clear it was his decision. 20 Judge Gullet denied the motion to withdraw the plea, stating, As far as I'm concerned this defendant took his chances. . . . I think the defendant was entered this plea knowingly and voluntarily, and he was adequately represented by counsel. 21 Fields appealed directly to the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals (OCCA), raising fifteen issues, including the four presented to us. See Fields v. State of Oklahoma, 923 P.2d 624, 627-28 (Okla. Crim. App. 1996) (hereinafter, Fields I). In a published opinion dated July 31, 1996, the OCCA found no errors warranting reversal and affirmed the death sentence. See id. at 638. On June 9, 1997, Fields filed for state post-conviction relief, raising seven issues, and this, too, was denied by the OCCA. See Fields v. State of Oklahoma, 946 P.2d 266, 273 (Okla. Crim. App. 1997) (hereinafter, Fields II). 22 Fields raised thirteen issues in his petition for federal habeas relief, including the four presented to us. In a 52-page Memorandum Opinion, Judge Thompson denied Fields's petition and motion for an evidentiary hearing. Notwithstanding his Memorandum Opinion, however, Judge Thomson granted a certificate of appealability (COA) on two issues: (1) whether Fields's guilty plea was voluntarily entered due to his trial counsels' coercion, and (2) whether insufficient evidence supported the prior violent felony aggravator. 23 This court granted COA on two additional issues: (3) whether Fields was denied adequate representation of trial counsel when deciding to enter a blind plea of guilty, and (4) whether the same evidence can be used to support different aggravators in the penalty phase without violating the United States Constitution.