Opinion ID: 1304136
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Appropriate Plea Procedures

Text: Today, the complexity of cases dictates that a reliable record exist containing the specific terms of any plea agreement. We hold, therefore, that effective with this decision, all plea agreements must be on the record and must recite the scope, offenses, and individuals involved in the agreement. We also hold that prospectively for all plea agreements entered after the filing of this opinion, we will limit our review of a plea agreement only to those terms which are fully set forth in the record. In the past, the proper procedure to be utilized by a trial judge in accepting a guilty plea has been the subject of considerable debate within our Court. In a line of cases beginning with State v. Cross, 270 S.C. 44, 240 S.E.2d 514 (1977) and culminating in Medlin v. State, 276 S.C. 540, 280 S.E.2d 648 (1981), we attempted to set forth guidelines for the approval by the trial court of a guilty plea bargain between the defendant and the state and to set strict limits upon the trial judge's involvement in any negotiations leading to such a plea. [8] One guiding principle which remained constant in all of these opinions was that the terms, conditions, and reasons for any plea agreement must be disclosed to the trial judge. Today, we underline the requirement of disclosure to the court of all aspects of the plea agreement and specifically add the requirement that such disclosure must be made on the record. Adherence to this procedure is the shared responsibility of the trial judge and trial counsel for the state and the defendant. The effect of our opinion today is that neither the State nor the defendant will be able to enforce plea agreement terms which do not appear on the record before the trial judge who accepts the plea. In the instant matter, the evidence supports the trial judge's finding that the Horry County plea agreement barred further prosecution of the Thrifts and their corporations. Amerson, supra . Accordingly, this finding is affirmed.