Parrish v. State
Parrish v. State
Opinion
Gregory Hernando Parrish, the appellant, pleaded guilty to, and was convicted of, the unlawful distribution of cocaine. He was sentenced to two years' imprisonment. That sentence was enhanced by two five-year terms because the cocaine was sold within three miles of both a school and a public housing project. See Ala. Code 1975, §§
Ross v. State," 'Even questions involving constitutional rights must be seasonably raised at the trial court level.' . . .
". . . In all but capital cases, alleged error in a criminal proceeding must be properly preserved before an appellate court will examine it; therefore, it is incumbent upon defense counsel to adequately preserve alleged errors in a proceeding by making an appropriate and timely objection."
This issue is raised for the first time on appeal. It is our understanding that under the recent Alabama Supreme Court case of Cantu v. State,
The record, however, does not support the appellant's argument.
"THE COURT: You are here in CC-93-722, where you are charged with unlawful distribution of a controlled substance. And that is a Class B felony for which you could receive from two years to twenty years and a fine of up to ten thousand dollars and costs of court.
"And as I understand, this transaction occurred within three miles of a school or housing project. And was it a school and a housing project?
"MR. MAXWELL [assistant district attorney]: Yes, sir.
"THE COURT: And under §
13A-12-250 and under §13A-12-270 , that's called the schoolyard statute and the housing project statute, an additional five years is imposed under each of those statutes, in addition to the minimum base sentence. Also, you can't apply for probation in those situations.
"Do you understand that range of punishment?
"THE DEFENDANT: Yes, sir." R. 4-5 (emphasis added).
Immediately before the appellant stated that he was pleading guilty, he asked to talk to his attorney and thereafter the following occurred: *Page 985
"MS. SHUMATE [defense counsel]: I apologize for the delay, Judge.
"THE COURT: Oh, no.
"MS. SHUMATE: It's a young man trying to get things straight in his mind.
"THE COURT: Right. I understand. One of the things you run into is the additional five years. All of that is subject to their parole procedures.
"MS. SHUMATE: I have explained that to him.
"THE COURT: Sometimes people think it's a mandatory service, but that's another story.
"MS. SHUMATE: Yes, sir." R. 10-11 (emphasis added).
The appellant then entered his plea of guilty.
Here, the judge informed the appellant of the minimum and maximum range of the base sentence and also informed the appellant of the mandatory enhancement punishment. The appellant stated that he understood that "an additional five years is imposed under each of those statutes, in addition to the minimum base sentence" and that he could not "apply forprobation" in regard to the enhancement punishments.
Both the "schoolyard" and the "housing project" enhancement statutes specifically state that the additional five-year sentence is to be imposed "with no provision for probation," but neither statute mentions parole. Ala. Code 1975, §§
The circuit judge did comply with the procedural requirements of Rule 14.4(a)(1), A.R.Crim.P., in informing the appellant of the proper range of sentence. The argument of the appellant is without merit.
The judgment of the circuit court is affirmed.
AFFIRMED.
All Judges concur.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Gregory Hernando Parrish v. State.
- Cited By
- 4 cases
- Status
- Published