Opinion ID: 199019
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Standard for Withdrawal of Plea

Text: 12 Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 32 governs the withdrawal of guilty pleas. When the motion to withdraw is made before sentencing, the court may permit the plea to be withdrawn if the defendant shows any fair and just reason. Fed. R. Crim. Proc. 32(e). In deciding whether an asserted reason for withdrawal meets the Rule 32(e) standard, the district court must look to the totality of the circumstances, paying special attention to whether the plea was knowing, voluntary, and intelligent under Rule 11. See United States v. Martinez-Molina, 64 F.3d 719, 732 (1st Cir. 1995); United States v. Cotal-Crespo, 47 F.3d 1, 3 (1st Cir. 1995). The inquiry is essentially open-ended, however. We have often recognized several other factors that may enter the decisional calculus of the trial court. These include the force of the defendant's proferred reason [for withdrawal]; the timing of the request; [and] the defendant's assertion of legal innocence (or the lack of such an assertion). United States v. Doyle, 981 F.2d 591, 594 (1st Cir. 1992); see also United States v. Isom, 85 F.3d 831, 834 (1st Cir. 1996) (citing cases); Cotal-Crespo, 47 F.3d at 3-4. The court may also consider whether there has been a plea agreement. See Isom, 85 F.3d at 834. 2 If the defendant shows sufficient reason for withdrawing the plea, the court must also consider any possible prejudice to the government. See Isom, 85 F.3d at 834-35; Doyle, 981 F.2d at 594.