Opinion ID: 545175
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: White's Claim of Prejudice Concerning Erroneous Advice

Text: 34 as to Maximum Sentence 35 Defendant Larry White was originally charged both with conspiring to distribute cocaine (Count I) and operating a continuing criminal enterprise (Count II). At his arraignment on these charges, White signed an Acknowledgement of Indictment form. The form correctly stated that he faced a maximum sentence of life imprisonment for operating a continuing criminal enterprise but erroneously stated that the maximum sentence for the conspiracy count was 20 years. The actual maximum sentence was 40 years. 21 U.S.C. Secs. 841 and 846. Count II was voluntarily dismissed by the government three days after the jury was selected. After his conviction on Count I, White was sentenced to 480 months imprisonment, the maximum allowed under the statute. 36 White, citing United States v. Fuller, 769 F.2d 1095 (5th Cir.1985), argues that the erroneous information denied him the opportunity to knowingly and intelligently plead guilty to the conspiracy count of the indictment. He asserts that he would have given more serious consideration to a guilty plea had he known that he could be sentenced to 40 years if convicted of conspiracy. Fuller involved a post-conviction action by Fuller seeking to set aside his guilty plea and sentence on the basis that the court overstated the maximum possible sentence. Fuller argued that he pled guilty because he erroneously believed he was subject to a longer sentence. The court accepted the general theory that an attack could be made on these grounds but, after examining all of the facts that confronted the defendant, determined that he had not pled guilty as a result of the misinformation. Id. at 1098-99. 37 Initially, we note that this case is very different from Fuller. Here, the defendant wishes to challenge his decision not to plead guilty. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, it is more difficult to understand how the defendant was harmed by his decision not to plead guilty. We need not decide whether such a challenge is available, however, since the issue was not raised below. Without any record from which we can determine whether the defendant knew the penalty he was facing in spite of the erroneous information, whether the erroneous information affected his decision not to plead guilty, and whether his decision not to plead guilty caused him cognizable harm, we cannot evaluate the claim. As with other claims that involve issues outside the scope of the record, these claims can be attacked, if at all, only in a collateral proceeding. See, e.g., United States v. Swidan, 888 F.2d 1076, 1081 (6th Cir.1989) (ineffective assistance claims cannot be raised for the first time on direct appeal since the trial record is normally insufficient to evaluate counsel performance). 38