Opinion ID: 514272
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: detrimental reliance upon plea agreement

Text: 17 In addition to his assertion that Agent Dickey possessed authority to bind the prosecution to the plea proposal, Kettering argues that he relied to his detriment upon the agent's representations, and therefore the district court erred in refusing to enforce the plea agreement. Kettering maintains that he has been prejudiced by his cooperation with Agent Dickey. He asserts that he disclosed crucial evidence regarding his case during the meeting with the agent; evidence which the government possesses and may use in furtherance of its investigation without fulfilling its side of the bargain. We find this argument without merit. Although Kettering did meet with the agent, he has failed to establish any resulting prejudicial reliance. 18 The Eighth Circuit was faced with a similar situation in United States v. Coon, 805 F.2d 822 (8th Cir.1986). In Coon, the defendant asserted that he detrimentally relied upon the prosecution's plea agreement by fully cooperating with the government and pleading guilty to a single count of conspiracy to distribute cocaine. Id. at 824. The plea agreement mistakenly proposed a maximum fine of $25,000. for the offense when the actual maximum fine had increased to $250,000. However, the defendant was informed of the mistake prior to the entry of his guilty plea. The defendant argued that after he met with a special federal agent investigating the case and told him everything he knew, he had changed his position in reliance on the proposed plea agreement and could not be restored to the status quo ante by pleading not guilty and proceeding to trial upon learning of the fine increase. Id. at 824-825. 19 The court rejected these contentions and held that only the actual entry of an involuntary guilty plea can be considered detrimental reliance. Id. Moreover, the court found that a detrimental reliance argument is inappropriate when the defendant learns of the change in the proposed agreement prior to entry of the plea since then, he still has the option of pleading not guilty and proceeding to trial. Id. The court also stated that the defendant's earlier cooperation with federal agents did not foreclose his trial option. If the defendant's cooperation was induced by the misrepresented plea agreement, the court could determine whether the statements were involuntary and, if so, exclude them at trial. Id. Thus, the court's remedy would restore the status quo and the defendant would be in no worse position than if the plea agreement never existed. Id. 3 20 The same reasoning applies to the present case. Although Santobello, supra, requires that the prosecution enforce agreements where the promise induces the guilty plea, Kettering's guilty plea was wholly voluntary and not contingent in any respect upon Agent Dickey's statements. The record reflects that within days after Kettering's meeting with Agent Dickey, he was aware that the government did not intend to abide by the proposed agreement; that a good faith mistake had been made. Transcript Vol. 2 p. 27-28. Approximately four months elapsed before Kettering ultimately entered a guilty plea. The record shows that at that time, Kettering entered his plea voluntarily and intelligently, upon the advice of counsel, and with full knowledge of the consequences of the plea. Transcript Vol. 3 p. 23-25. Thus, Kettering cannot argue that he detrimentally relied upon the stale plea proposal in entering his subsequent guilty plea. 21 Similarly, Kettering's cooperation with Agent Dickey did not place him in a position where restoration of the status quo ante would be impossible. Rule 11 Fed.R.Crim.P. provides that pleas, plea discussions and related statements made therein are inadmissible in any proceeding against the defendant. As noted on the letter submitted by Kettering's attorney outlining the proposed plea agreement, the discussions at Kettering's meeting with Dickey were made pursuant to this rule. Thus, the government could not use any information it gathered during that meeting against Kettering later. Moreover, the AUSA and Agent Dickey both testified that the information was not used in any further investigations, it was not reduced to a written report for the DEA, nor was it even needed by the government to prosecute the case. Transcript Vol. 2 p. 18-19, 28. Therefore, Kettering has failed to show that he suffered any detrimental reliance on the proposed agreement. Any statements he made while cooperating with Agent Dickey could be excluded in subsequent proceedings. This remedy would have restored Kettering to the status quo ante and have placed him in the same position as if the agreement had never existed were he to have pleaded not guilty and proceeded to trial. 22 The United States Supreme Court in Mabry v. Johnson, 467 U.S. 504, 104 S.Ct. 2543, 81 L.Ed.2d 437 (1984) stated that as long as the defendant is not in a worse position, there is no detrimental reliance. The prosecutor in Mabry withdrew his first offer and replaced it by a second, less favorable offer before the defendant could accept the first one. The court found that the defendant's guilty plea was in no sense induced by the prosecutor's withdrawn offer because when he later entered his plea, he was fully aware that the second agreement controlled. Id. at 510, 104 S.Ct. at 2548. Thus, the Supreme Court held that a criminal defendant's acceptance of a prosecutor's proposed plea bargain does not create a constitutional right to have the bargain specifically enforced where the prosecution withdraws the offer prior to the acceptance of the guilty plea. Id. 23 Likewise, Kettering's guilty plea was not induced by Agent Dickey's representations. He was fully aware at the time of entering his guilty plea that the government refused to enforce the proposal. Moreover, the prosecution could not, and did not, use any information obtained from Kettering against him. Since Kettering was in no worse a position at the time he entered his plea than he was prior to any plea negotiations, he suffered neither prejudice nor detrimental reliance. Accordingly, he is not entitled to specific enforcement of the plea proposal.