Court Opinion

ID: 9445246
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-03 21:23:41.391626+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:30:10.899511
License: Public Domain

EDGERTON, Chief Judge
(dissenting).
Appellant’s motion was entitled “Motion to vacate sentence, withdraw pleas -of guilty and to enter plea of not guilty”. It stated that the defendant “moves this court, pursuant to Title 28, section 2255 of the United States Code to vacate sentences imposed on defendant in the above-numbered criminal cases, and to grant an order permitting defendant to withdraw his pleas of guilty in the aforesaid criminal cases and enter pleas of not •guilty in accordance with Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure [18 U.S.C.A.]. Defendant urges as grounds for the motion stated above, that (1) defendant was without the ‘assistance of counsel for his defense’ at the time he entered his pleas of guilty * * Counsel said in court: “Your Honor, this comes before you on motion to vacate the sentence, withdraw the pleas of guilty and enter pleas of not guilty * * *. It is the contention of the defendant that at the time of arraignment he was not represented by counsel.”
In a colloquy with the court, counsel said he was asking only to have McNair resentenced. But the court was not misled as to the nature of the defendant’s motion. The court said: “This is a motion by the defendant, who was incarcerated in the penitentiary, to vacate the sentences imposed on him and for leave to withdraw the pleas of guilty pursuant to which the sentences were imposed, and to enter pleas of not guilty.” If, as I think, the defendant is entitled to the relief for which he asked in his motion, I think his constitutional right should not be denied because of his counsel’s oral statement. As the Supreme Court said in Johnson v. Zerbst, 304 U.S. 458, 464, 58 S.Ct. 1019, 1023, 82 L.Ed. 1461: “ ‘courts indulge every reasonable presumption against waiver’ of fundamental constitutional rights * * This should be particularly true where long sentences are involved. This case involves 17 consecutive terms of 3 to 4 years each.
In the affidavit filed with his motion, the defendant “says he was not advised by the court that he was entitled to the assistance of counsel at time of arraignment. Affiant also says that he was 24 years of age at time he entered pleas of guilty, that he had a 9th grade education and that he was not aware of his right to counsel at time of arraignment, nor did he waive his right to be assisted by counsel at said time.” If he was not aware of his right to counsel, he did not and could not intelligently waive the right. The probability that he was not aware of it is great. In February 1938, when the defendant was arraigned, many lawyers were not aware that a defendant who is without counsel is entitled to have counsel appointed by the court. Johnson v. Zerbst, 304 U.S. 458, 58 S.Ct. 1019, 82 L.Ed. 1461, was not decided until three months later.
In its opposition to appellant’s motion the government says: “Information received from individuals familiar with the Court procedure in 1938 prior to the decision in Zerbst v. Johnson, including Mr. Allen Krouse, who prosecuted the instant matter discloses the following: On arraignment days the prisoners would be taken into the Court room and the Clerk would call off their names, advise them as to what they were charged with and asked [sic] whether or not they desired to waive the reading of the indictment and how they pleaded. The Judge presiding would not take a plea of guilty until he was satisfied that defendant knew what he was charged with. If there was hesitancy on the part of a defendant the Judge would question the defendant to satisfy himself the defendant understood the nature of the proceeding and his rights. On many occasions, the Judge would refuse to take a plea of guilty and direct the clerk to enter a plea of not guilty, or he would accept the plea *860subject to its later withdrawal upon the advice of counsel who would be appointed to be present at the time of sentencing.” This does not suggest that the defendant was informed, when he was arraigned, of his right to have counsel. It suggests the contrary.
The record contains nothing that contradicts the crucial statements in appellant’s affidavit. In this state of the record I think his sworn statement is sufficient to discharge his burden of showing he did not waive his right to counsel. Farnsworth v. United States, 98 U.S. App.D.C.-, 232 F.2d 59, is directly in point. As we said in that case, “where the fundamental constitutional right has been denied, an accused should not be precluded from relief because he cannot satisfy a court that he had good cause for any delay in seeking it. ‘To permit a defense of laches to the writ would, in effect, denude it of one of its essential characteristics — the power to hurdle a time factor.’ ” 98 U.S.App.D.C. at page -, 232 F.2d at page 63.