Opinion ID: 1852051
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: whether the state breached the memorandum of understanding and due process concerns.

Text: ¶ 20. Presley contends that (1) the State cannot unilaterally renege on a plea agreement on which a defendant has relied to his detriment; (2) the burden is on the State to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant breached the agreement and the breach was sufficiently material to warrant rescission; (3) the State never filed a formal motion to rescind the agreement as required by law; and (4) he is entitled to specific performance of the agreement. Presley cites to United States v. Castaneda, 162 F.3d 832, 836 (5th Cir.1998): When the government believes that a defendant has breached the terms of [an agreement] and wishes to be relieved of performing its part of the bargain[,] due process prevents the government from making this determination and nullifying the agreement unilaterally. Instead, the government must prove to the court by a preponderance of the evidence that (1) the defendant breached the agreement, and (2) the breach is sufficiently material to warrant rescission. ¶ 21. A plea agreement is basically a binding contract between the prosecution and the defendant that, if the defendant does a, b, and c, the prosecution will do d, e, and f. If the defendant, relying on the promise of the prosecution to recommend a lenient sentence, pleads guilty as part of what he has promised to do, and the prosecution later unilaterally rescinds the contract, the defendant has already, in reliance on the contract, acted to his detriment. The defendant should at least be given the opportunity, before sentencing, to withdraw his plea. ¶ 22. Professor Charles Alan Wright has written that the granting of a motion to withdraw is within the discretion of the trial court, but withdrawal should be permitted if it was induced by fraud, mistake, imposition, misrepresentation, or misapprehension by the defendant of his legal rights.... The defendant may withdraw his plea of guilty when the prosecution has either coerced him by threats or persuaded him by deceit to enter such a plea....    Cooperation with government authorities is not alone sufficient to require the granting of a motion to withdraw a guilty plea, but where the defendant shows that his cooperation was induced by government representations which were repudiated, the motion should be granted. In any event, the court has discretion to permit withdrawal of the guilty plea where defendant has cooperated with the government. Wright, § 537, at 190, 191, 197 (emphasis added & footnotes omitted). A dispute as to the terms of a plea bargain agreement and whether the government breached the agreement required that evidentiary hearing be conducted in connection with defendant's motion to withdraw plea of guilty. United States v. Gonzalez-Hernandez, 481 F.2d 648, 650 (5th Cir.1973). ¶ 23. However, in the case sub judice, the Court finds that Judge O'Barr's sentencing must be affirmed. Even though the State did not formally notify, by the filing of an appropriate motion, Presley of its intent to rescind the MOU, it did send a letter to Presley's attorneys advising them that it would not recommend the three-year sentence for each count. mentioned in the MOU. Presley therefore cannot credibly argue that he was not on notice that the State would not recommend the minimum sentence. Indeed, as discussed below, the State was not required to give notice of its recommendation because, even though it determined that Presley had not fully cooperated, it recommended a sentence within the range mentioned in the MOU. ¶ 24. Even though the State did not recommend the minimum sentence mentioned in the MOU, it did reserve the right to decide unilaterally whether Presley had fully cooperated with its investigation. Furthermore, the MOU stated that the State would recommend twelve (12) years on each count if the State determined that Presley had not fully cooperated. The State therefore fulfilled its contractual obligation under the MOU by recommending the twelve (12) years for each count. A hearing was held before sentencing was imposed wherein Presley was given the opportunity to cross-examine an FBI agent as to the reasons why the District Attorney did not think that Presley had fully cooperated with law enforcement officers. Finally, throughout the entry of the plea and the sentencing hearing, Judge O'Barr repeatedly stated that he would not be bound by the MOU and that he would impose any sentence he deemed to be appropriate. Judge O'Barr was not a party to the MOU and could, under law, impose any sentence which was contemplated under the appropriate statute. ¶ 25. We finally find that Judge Coleman's finding of cooperation is error based on the plain terms of the agreement giving the State sole discretion to determine cooperation and further, on Judge O'Barr specifically stating he was not bound by the plea agreement. Also, Judge O'Barr was in a better position to judge the credibility of the State's witness on Presley's purported cooperation. Judge O'Barr presided over the hearing when the State's witness testified, and Judge Coleman merely had the record of the hearing to consider.