Court Opinion

ID: 9726690
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 13:03:56.779737+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:25:29.746506
License: Public Domain

Williams, J.
I concur except that I believe Fields, supra, not pertinent, and I further disagree with comment thereon.
Appendix
The Court: File number 72-01666, People versus Glynn Peters. Mr. Peters, do you understand what you’re charged with?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Let me tell you specifically, so there will be no question about it. The police and the Prosecutor claim that on December the 22nd, 1971, that you were in an apartment building at 905 Merton Street in the City of Detroit. They claim that you were armed with a weapon, that *372you went there to rob a lady named Janice Ott. That you were robbing her and that during the course of that robbery you killed her and that that killing constituted murder in the first degree. Do you understand that?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Mr. Hill?
Mr. Hill: May it please the Court, I’ve been over the factual situation with this defendant. The Court has asked this defendant. He’s aware of the present charge pending against him. We have conducted an examination in this matter. And we’ve had a motion in the matter. I’ve reviewed the law with him and the facts applicable to that law. I’ve given him the best advice I know how. And based upon that advice it’s his decision to, at this time, withdraw his former plea heretofore, that plea being not guilty. And enter a plea of guilty to the included offense of murder in the second degree. I’ve explained to him the difference between the charge now pending in the complaint and warrant, that charge being first degree murder. And I’ve explained to him that if he was convicted of that charge the court would be duty bound to impose a mandatory life sentence, if he was convicted of the charge as it now exists.
However, if he offered a plea to the included offense of second degree murder, the punishment can be any number of years up to and including life. And based upon that difference in [sic] his decision now to offer a plea to the included offense of second degree murder.
The Court: Thank you, Mr. Hill. Mr. Peters, how old are you today?
The Defendant: Seventeen.
The Court: Back on December the 22nd of 1971, you were sixteen years old, is that correct?
*373The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: And when you were arrested and charged in this case you were sixteen years old, right?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: And you had a hearing in Juvenile Court before Judge Lincoln where Judge Lincoln had to decide whether to treat you as a juvenile or where you should be treated as an adult, isn’t that right?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: And you were waived over to Recorder’s Court for trial, right?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: And Mr. Hill was appointed to represent you on this charge, isn’t that true?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: Has he conferred with you and talked with you on a number of occasions about this case?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: And have you told him all of the facts in this case? Have you told him everything that happened in this case?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: And has he explained to you what the law is?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: Do you think you understand everything that he told you?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: If you were only sixteen years old when you were arrested, were you going to school?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: Have you quit school?
The Defendant: Yes.
*374The Court: Where were you going to school?
The Defendant: Kettering High School.
The Court: What grade were you in when you quit?
The Defendant: Ten B.
The Court: Has all your schooling been in Detroit?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: You’re from Detroit, born here?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: Have you ever been in trouble — well, you weren’t an adult, so you couldn’t have ever been charged with a felony before, right?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: You have been in trouble before as a juvenile, is that true?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: Do you think you know what a jury trial is?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Have you ever seen one in real life?
The Defendant: No, sir.
The Court: Have you ever seen one in the movies or on television?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: You have some idea then what they look like?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Do you understand that you have a Constitutional Right to have a trial with a jury on this charge of first-degree murder?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: You know that that means that you have a right to have twelve independent citizens, elected to be the jury, to hear the facts in your case?
*375The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: Okay. If you were to have a jury trial you and Mr. Hill would come to Court and you would have clothes to wear so that you wouldn’t have to wear that prison uniform. You and Mr. Hill would come to Court. You’d sit down at one table, the Prosecuting Attorney and Sergeant Roffey — do you know who Sergeant Roffey is?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: From the Homicide Bureau. Him and the Prosecutor would sit down at the other table. We’d get maybe fifty or sixty jurors down here and Mr. Hill and the Prosecutor would pick twelve of them to sit on the jury in your case. Once they pick the twelve then the trial would start.
One by one every person that knows anything about your case, anyone who has accused you of this crime, would have to come to Court and get up there on that witness stand and answer questions about the case that the Prosecutor would ask. The jury would be there, you’d be here, the jury would hear what those witnesses had to say.
When the Prosecutor is done asking each witness some questions Mr. Hill would have a chance to ask those witnesses questions. Mr. Hill could question the witnesses, cross examine the witnesses, he could try to show that those witnesses were making a mistake, or that they were lying or that they didn’t know what they were talking about or that they shouldn’t be believed. And he could ask them any questions that you wanted him to ask also. Do you understand?
The Defendant: Yes, I do.
The Court: Okay. After all of the witnesses that the police knew anything about had testified there might be some people that you would want to have come to court. And if you had some witnesses that *376you wanted to come to court and testify in your behalf we would get a subpoena, a court order, and make those people come down here to court, make them get on the witness stand and make them testify, if they had some testimony that was favorable to you. Do you understand that?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Then there might come a time when you’d want to get up on that witness stand. And if you wanted to you could. But if you didn’t want to testify you wouldn’t have to. And if you didn’t want to say anything nobody could say anything about it. Nobody could tell the jury 'Glynn Peters should have testified.’ Nobody could say to the jury 'how come Peters didn’t testify’. Nobody could say to the jury 'if Peters was innocent he would have testified.’ Nobody could even mention the fact that you didn’t want to testify. Or that you hadn’t testified. Do you understand that?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: Okay. Now, while the trial was going on you’d be sitting there with Mr. Hill and the jury would be able to see you. The jury couldn’t look over there and say 'well, he must have done something or the police wouldn’t have him’. The jury could not say that. Do you understand that?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: The jury, the twelve people on the jury would have to keep in mind this thought. They would have to keep thinking, 'I assume that Glynn Peters didn’t do anything wrong.’ 'And I’m going to keep assuming that until after I’ve heard all of the evidence.’
Now, what that means is the jury couldn’t even start to think that you might be guilty until after they heard all of the evidence and all of the facts in the case. Understand?
*377The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Are you sure?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Okay, that’s called the presumption of innocence. The jury has to presume that you’re innocent until they hear all the evidence, okay?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: After the jury did hear all the evidence, they’d go into that room there where it says jury (indicating) and twelve of them would talk about the case. Now, those twelve people could not find you guilty unless all twelve of them were completely convinced that you had committed this murder. Do you understand that?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: If one of them had a doubt they could not find you guilty. They would all twelve of them be completely convinced that on December the 22nd you were there on Merton Street in that apartment building. They’d have to be completely convinced that you were there to rob that lady, and they’d have to be completely convinced that she was killed during the course of that robbery. They’d have to be totally convinced about that. Do you understand?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: Okay. And you know that you would never be alone at that trial, if we had it. Mr. Hill would always be with you. Do you understand that?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Now, you just heard Mr. Hill tell me that you didn’t want a jury trial. And I tried to explain to you just now what a jury trial is all about. Do you understand everything that I just told you?
*378The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Do you want to have the jury trial?
The Defendant: No, sir.
The Court: Mr. Hill told me that you want to withdraw your plea of not guilty to the charge of first-degree murder. You know, you’ve pleaded not guilty since your arrest back in December of ’71.
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: He said, Mr. Hill said, that now you want to plead guilty to a lesser charge called second-degree murder. Is that what you want to do?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Do you understand, Mr. Peters, that if you plead guilty to second-degree murder you might go to prison for the rest of your life?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: All right. And when I talk about a life sentence that means I could start with any number of years. I could start with a sentence that had a forty year minimum or a sixty year minimum or a hundred year minimum. Do you understand that?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: All right or just impose a straight life sentence. Do you understand that?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Do you know the difference between a first degree murder life sentence and a second degree murder life sentence?
The Defendant: I think so, sir.
The Court: First degree murder is you serve life, and that means until you die. And you can’t ever be paroled. Do you understand the difference?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
*379The Court: Did anybody tell you that if you plead guilty you’d get an easy sentence?
The Defendant: No, sir.
The Court: Did anybody tell you that what sentence you’d get?
The Defendant: No, sir.
The Court: Did anybody make you any promises? Or did anybody threaten you? Or did anybody say anything to you to get you to plead guilty?
The Defendant: No, sir.
The Court: Has anybody told you that you had to plead guilty?
The Defendant: No, sir.
The Court: Is it your decision and yours alone?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Why do you want to plead guilty, Mr. Peters?
The Defendant: Because, like, I feel like I’m man enough to stand up for what I did. For what I did wrong.
The Court: Are you telling me that you are guilty of this crime?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: Do you remember the day of December the 22nd, 1971?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Do you know where 905 Merton Street is?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: Tell me what you did on that day? You tell me what you did on December the 22nd, 1971 on Merton Street?
The Defendant: Well, like, Christmas was coming up, and, like, I didn’t have nothing, and I wanted to get the family something. So, like, the people that lives in there was in the front room. I *380told them I was going out for awhile. And they said, 'All right.’
So I went towards Six Mile, and then I got on Merton and the lady she drove up and I went past her. And when she went in the parking lot I doubled, came back, and she put her key in the door — .
The Court: She what? Put her key in the door?
The Defendant: Yes. In the back door. And I went up behind the lady and she ran upstairs, and I went up behind her and I put my arm around her neck and told her to give me the money.
The Court: Did you have a weapon?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: What kind of weapon?
The Defendant: A small kitchen knife.
The Court: Did you have that out at the time you grabbed her around the neck?
The Defendant: No.
The Court: You grabbed her around the neck and you told her to give you the money, right?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: Then what happened?
The Defendant: She said, 'All right.’ And then she started screaming, she started backing up, she was going to fight me, I just panicked.
The Court: And what did you do when you panicked?
The Defendant: Stabbed her.
The Court: You got that knife out at some time, right?
The Defendant: Right.
The Court: Do you know where it was that you stabbed her? What part of her body?
The Defendant: In the abdomen, I think.
The Court: Do you remember how many times?
*381The Defendant: No.
The Court: Then what did you do?
The Defendant: Ran. I threw the knife up on the roof right behind her apartment, and I still had the purse, and I took the money out of the purse and put the purse between two parked cars in the parking lot.
The Court: You did take the money out of the purse?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: Do you remember how much you got?
The Defendant: No.
The Court: And you left the purse between two parked cars?
The Defendant: Right.
The Court: Then what did you do?
The Defendant: Ran home.
The Court: You were arrested a few days later, weren’t you? A week or so later?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: And you were taken to Juvenile Court, right?
The Defendant: Right.
The Court: And within a day or two after that you came downtown and were given a lie detector test, right?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: And at the time of that lie detector test you made a statement to the police, didn’t you?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: And in that statement you told the police what you had done, true?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: At the time you made that statement *382did you know that you didn’t have to tell the police anything?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: Had they warned you that you had a right to remain silent?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: And they warned you that anything you said could be used against you?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: And they told you that you could have a lawyer present?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Had they told you that they would appoint a lawyer to represent you if you couldn’t aiford to hire one?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Did they tell you that if you started to talk you could stop talking at any time?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: And you went ahead and made a statement to them, is that right?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Okay, was that statement true?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: Did anybody force you to make it?
The Defendant: No, sir.
The Court: You have made a statement here today, haven’t you, Mr. Peters?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Have you made that statement today of your own free will?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: Have you told me the truth?
The Defendant: Yes.
*383The Court: Have you told me everything that you want to tell me about what happened out there on Merton Street?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Do you understand what you’ve done here?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: First of all, with regard to your jury trial. You gave up your right to have a jury trial, didn’t you?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: Do you still want to give it up?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: You confess to this crime?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: You plead guilty to it, you understand that?
The Defendant: Yes.
The Court: And that puts an end to this case except for the sentence?
The Defendant: Right.
The Court: Do you understand that when you come back to be sentenced that you might be sentenced to prison for the rest of your life?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: It’s not too late to change your mind. Do you still want to plead guilty to second-degree murder?
The Defendant: Yes, sir.
The Court: I’ll accept the plea of guilty to second-degree murder, and I’ll refer the defendant to the Probation Department for pre-sentence investigation report. And I’ll set sentencing for the 22nd day of November. And he will be remanded to the custody of the sheriff until that date.