Court Opinion

ID: 9790090
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-31 01:46:00.72185+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:37:26.177868
License: Public Domain

Reed, J.
(dissenting) — I dissent from that portion of our disposition that vitiates the habitual criminal finding and sentence. I do so because there is substantial extrinsic evidence supporting the conclusion that defendant understood the nature of the charge to which he pleaded guilty in 1972. The evidence was sufficient, I believe, to justify the trial judge in finding that the State had carried its burden of proving a valid conviction beyond a reasonable doubt.
I also believe the charge of simple possession of a specified controlled substance is self-explanatory and the court need not conjure up a laundry list of tenuous suppositions and remote possibilities regarding any and all esoteric defenses that might have been available to Hystad. Yet, that is just what the majority has done in this case. Hystad's situation is far removed from that of the defendant in State v. Powell, 29 Wn. App. 163, 627 P.2d 1337 (1981), where we vacated a first degree murder plea for lack of the factual basis required by CrR 4.2. In McCarthy v. United States, 394 U.S. 459, 22 L. Ed. 2d 418, 89 S. Ct. 1166 (1969), cited by the majority, the Supreme Court, exercising its supervisory powers, construed rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure. The McCarthy Court expressly disavows any reliance upon the constitution. In effect, the majority here measures Hystad's plea by CrR 4.2, which was not effective until July 1973.
At the plea taking in 1972, Hystad's attorney, with whom he had "discussed [the plea change] fully," argued for concurrent sentences as follows:
Mr. Allotta: Your Honor, briefly, there is no question that this man will have to go to the Department of Institutions. I'm handing you up a copy of the violation report. He is already on parole on another charge which will be revoked. I would ask that the court, since this man is a — I get these fellows that are involved in dope at *52the beginning stage of the game or at the beginning stage of the action, I try to get them in a program to clear them up. I remember a flare up we had with this man because he was cut off with narcotics, he hasn't had any for awhile up there in the jail, he's a little more sensible now. I think it is a matter of getting him down to the Department of Institutions for him to get some treatment and dry out. I would ask that you have these charges run concurrently rather than consecutively, because I'm sure the minimum they will set on this will give him ample time to clean up the drug problem and hopefully the other felonious actions and, like I say, he is 36 years of age and it appears that the problem is drugs, and that's why he commits the other crimes.
Next, Hystad's trial judge had the benefit of a transcript of the 1975 Clark County proceedings where Hystad engaged in the following colloquy with Judge Skimas:
The Court: Do you have a drug problem?
The Defendant: All my life.
The Court: What kind of drugs have you been involved with?
The Defendant: Opiates.
The Court: Have you been on the hard stuff?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Defendant: I took to the poppy when I was a young man.
Also, during his trial on a separate charge of escape Hystad testified on direct examination as follows:
Q In the past years of your life, have you taken narcotic drugs?
A Most of my life, yes. As a young man and throughout my adult life.
Q When did you start taking drugs?
A As a teenager.
Q What kind of drugs did you take?
A Well, all the opiate derivatives, morphine, and some of the stronger ones, like heroin.
Q Heroin?
A Yes.
Q How do you take those kinds of drugs? By pill, or how?
*53A Usually intravenously, injected into the blood stream. Some people start out just taking it orally or through the nose, but it always ends up the other way.
Q At the present time are you receiving any medication at all?
A No.
Q Back in April of this year, when you were arrested, at that time, were you taking any drugs?
A Yes, I was addicted to narcotics at the time.
Q After you got out of the hospital following your arrest and came to the jail, did you receive prescribed medication from a doctor?
A Yes.
Q What kind of medication?
A Dolophine.
Q What is the more common name for that?
A Methadone. You use it for heroin withdrawal, things of this nature.
Q What do you mean they use it for heroin withdrawal? How do they use it?
A Well, for the people that are on methadone programs, they take it orally. It is used because of its long-lasting properties. You know, it doesn't wear off.
Q So as far as you know, the pills that were being provided to you in the jail, under the prescription were this methadone or whatever the other name is?
A Dolophine, right.
Q Was the dosage that you were receiving decreased at any point in time?
A Yes, it was.
Q Was that under the doctor's orders?
A Yes.
Q Was it ever terminated?
A Yes, it was terminated before this incident that I am on trial for.
Q Do you know how long before the doctor's office escapade that they ceased giving you the medication?
A No, I'm not sure on that, Mr. Parker. This is, you know, four or five months ago, and things were a little
A Things were a little unclear at the time, four or five months ago. Within a few weeks or a month, some*54thing like that.
Q When a person takes heroin or morphine or whatever the other ones that you named were, what effect does it have on them physically?
Q That is really what I want to know, is what effect it has on you, when you take a shot or pill or something.
A Well, different drugs have different effects, but mainly like your Dolophine was a drug the Germans invented in the Second World War. They ran out of their opiate supplies, and they wanted something for the battle field casualties with long-lasting properties. It is not a pure drug made from poppies. It is a chemical made in the laboratories. It deadens the pain centers in the brain, you know.
Q How does that feel to you, though? What does it feel like?
A It is a euphoric feeling. Not as much so as heroin, or morphine, or some of the other opium derivatives.
In addition, the trial judge considered this letter which defendant wrote to a local county commissioner:
I read in the Aberdeen paper recently that this county used up its court funds and had to ask for further appropriations.
I am a prisoner here and am facing numerous felony charges. Approximately 2 weeks ago I pled guilty to attempted robbery, assault, & eluding a police vehicle. My agreement in pleading guilty was for the court to run the charges together (concurrent). This saves the county the expense of a trial and gives me a minor break on the time structure. After I entered my plea, Mr. Jannhunen [sic], the prosecutor filed Habitual Criminal charges. This puts this county through the expense of a trial by jury. Since then I have picked up additional charges of Escape & Burglary. The prosecutor is going to try these charges also. I offer to plead guilty to these charges if the prosecutor will run them concurrent also, and then just send me on to prison. But no, Mr. Jannhunen wants to try me on all charges so he can then try me on the Habitual Offender Act.
The strange part is I will end up doing less time on the Hab. Criminal Act — for a prisoner is released after 7 or 8 yrs. If he accepted guilty pleas and gave me 10-10 & 5 *55yrs. for the 1st set of charges, and 10 & 10 yrs. on the most recent charges — running concurrent, I would get a 10 year minimum from the parole board, plus I was on parole & it was revoked and I "owe" the state 5 additional years for that. I would have to spend 10 to 12 yrs. in prison this way. Is it any wonder you are short of money for trials?
Mr. Jannhunen goes beyond over-zealousness into vindictiveness. There's no sense or reasoning in his pell mell pursuit of justice. I personally am in the position now where I can't be damaged any more by other charges. I have nothing to lose. I am going to withdraw my guilty plea on the 1st set of charges and have a lengthy jury trial. Then I will be tried on the 2nd set of charges (jury trial) and then Mr. Jannhunen will file Habitual Criminal charges which will bring another jury trial. One man — 3 expensive jury trials. I intend to appeal every one of them. The legal cost to this county for me alone will use up the extra 30 thousand plus in dollars appropriated.
The prosecutor could have sent me to prison months ago on a guilty plea. He wants to play "hard guy" and grind his axes, but in reality he isn't "fighting crime" — he is wasting money.
In the last analysis, can there be any doubt that this extremely articulate sophisticate of the drug culture knew exactly what he was admitting to in 1977? I think not. It would indeed be a travesty if we were to loose again upon a society for whom he cares not one whit, an incorrigible, unremorseful predator. The habitual criminal statutes were tailor-made for Mr. Hystad. He has earned the label of habitual criminal and should receive it.
Finally, in exchange for his 1972 guilty plea, and presumably because of his long-standing drug problems, defendant received concurrent sentences. The State also dismissed one other drug possession count, two grand larceny counts, one count of credit card theft and a separate escape charge. I agree heartily with Justice Rosellini's dissent in State v. Hennings, 100 Wn.2d 379, 396, 670 P.2d 256 (1983), when he says:
We should not permit a defendant to obtain the benefits of a plea bargaining agreement and then subse*56quently challenge such agreement and obtain the benefit of avoiding habitual criminal status.
The judgment and sentence should be affirmed in all respects.