Court Opinion

ID: 9680141
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 07:21:25.146877+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:17:25.888002
License: Public Domain

Justice CUNNINGHAM.
I respectfully dissent from the excellent writing of our distinguished Chief Justice.
I believe Commonwealth v. Fuartado is distinguishable in a small, but critical way from the case before us. In that case, the Court of Appeals concluded that a defense lawyer has no affirmative duty to inform his or her client of the impact that a guilty plea will have on civil immigration status. I fully agree.
In this case, however, if Appellee’s claim is to be believed — a prospect still looming because no hearing was held — he specifically inquired of his counsel about this very important matter. Appellee had been in the United States for decades and had even served this country in Vietnam. Again, it is Appellee’s contention that his counsel gave him terribly wrong advice. The majority states that the matter of deportation is “not a matter required to be addressed by counsel.” Again, I fully agree. But here, Appellee raised the issue himself. Counsel could have just as easily, and responsibly, responded that he did not know the answer. Counsel who gives erroneous advice to a client which influences a felony conviction is worse than no lawyer at all. Common sense dictates that such deficient lawyering goes to effectiveness. The allegations made by Appellee may not be credible. But he was at least entitled to a hearing. I do not believe it is too much of a burden to place on our defense bar the duty to say, “I do not know.” Accordingly, I would reverse and remand for a hearing.
SCHRODER, J., joins this dissenting opinion.