People v. Gandy
People v. Gandy
Opinion of the Court
Defendant Anthony Edward Gandy appeals following his no contest plea, in which he admitted a prior strike (Pen. Code, §§ 667, subds. (b) -(i), 1170.12, subd. (a) -(d) )
Defendant contends he did not voluntarily and intelligently waive his Boykin- Tahl rights (the right to a jury trial, the right to confront witnesses, and the privilege against self-incrimination) when he pleaded no contest in the Oregon proceeding, and therefore the prior convictions cannot be used to enhance his sentence in this case. However, defendant may not collaterally attack a prior out-of-state conviction without demonstrating that " Tahl -like requirements operated in the jurisdiction *898at the time of the plea." (People v. Green (2000)
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL SUMMARY
The Los Angeles District Attorney charged defendant by information in December 2011 with seven counts: dissuading a witness by force or threat (§ 136.1, subd. (c)(1); count 1), assault with a semiautomatic firearm (§ 245, subd. (b); count 2), possession of a firearm by a felon (§ 12021, subd. (a)(1); count 3), possession of ammunition (§ 12316, subd. (b)(1); count 4), sale and transportation of a controlled substance (Health & Saf. Code, § 11379, subd. (a) ; count 5), possession for sale of a controlled substance (Health & Saf. Code, § 11378 ; count 6), and leaving the scene of an accident (Veh. Code, § 20001, subd. (a) ; count 7). Three prior felony convictions were alleged as strikes (§§ 667, subds. (b) -(i), 1170.12, subd. (a) -(d) ) and as prior serious felonies (§ 667, subd. (a)(1) ). Enhancements for personal use of a firearm also were alleged. (§§ 665, subd. (c), 1192.7, subd. (c), 12022.5, subd. (a).) Defendant pleaded not guilty and denied the special allegations.
In April 2012, defendant moved to dismiss the alleged prior felony convictions, which resulted from his no contest plea to two counts of burglary and one count of robbery before an Oregon court in 2001. He argued the prior convictions could not be used to enhance his sentence because he had not been expressly advised of nor waived his rights, as required by Boykin- Tahl and Oregon law. He cited the relevant Oregon statute, which provides: " '(1) The court shall not accept a plea of guilty or no contest ... without first addressing the defendant personally and determining that the defendant understands the nature of the charge. [¶] (2) The court shall inform the defendant: (a) That by a plea of guilty or no contest the defendant waives the right: [¶] [ (A) ] To trial by jury; [¶] [ (B) ] Of confrontation; and [¶] [ (C) ] Against self-incrimination." (
The plea petition was a two-page form including half a page for defense counsel's certification. Paragraph 6 stated: "I understand that I am not required to plead guilty or no contest and may plead not guilty if I choose. If I plead not guilty, I understand I am entitled to a speedy trial before a jury of my peers; ... that I have an absolute right to confront any witness that would testify against me and cross examine such witness; [and] that I need not take the witness stand or give any testimony against myself." Paragraph 11 stated: "I have taken no drink nor anything else which would in any way [impair] my judgment at this time, and I feel th[at] I am now fully alert and that in executing this petition I am doing so knowingly and voluntarily." Defendant signed and dated the petition. His attorney certified that he believed "the statements, representations and declarations made by Defendant in the foregoing petition are in all respects accurate and true." His attorney also certified "[t]hat in my opinion the Defendant's plea is voluntarily and understandingly made."
The transcript of the plea and sentencing hearing indicates that the Oregon trial court had ratified a plea bargain agreement and defendant tendered the plea petition. The transcript includes the following colloquy:
*899Judge: Mr. Gandy uh, I see that you and Mr. Bain [defense counsel] have both signed this written plea petition. Did you in fact sign this on November the 14th?
Gandy: Yes sir.
Judge: Did you have a chance to read through it carefully and discuss it with Mr. Bain before you signed it[?]
Gandy: Yes I did.
Judge: Any questions about what it says or what you are giving up by entering this plea?
Gandy: No.
In his declaration dated March 5, 2012, defendant stated that his attorney in Oregon told him to sign the plea petition, did not read each word and paragraph to him, never specifically advised him of paragraph 6, and never advised him that he was waving his right to a jury trial, the right to confront witnesses, and the privilege against self-incrimination when he pleaded guilty.
In June 2012, the California trial court held a hearing on defendant's motion to dismiss the prior convictions. The prosecutor argued that the Boykin- Tahl requirements were satisfied because the plea petition advised defendant of his constitutional rights and included his acknowledgment that the plea was executed "knowingly and voluntarily." Defense counsel countered that the plea petition failed to specify which rights defendant was waiving; and defendant did not expressly waive his Boykin- Tahl rights when entering his plea in open court. The trial court took the matter under submission.
The court issued a minute order several days later denying defendant's motion. The court reasoned: "Although Gandy received incomplete Boykin/ Tahl advisement in his Oregon case according to the standard set in [People v. Mosby (2004)
In August 2014, the district attorney filed an amended information, which added an eighth count for possession of a controlled substance with a firearm (Health & Saf. Code, § 11370.1, subd. (a) ). Defendant withdrew his plea of not guilty as to counts two and six pursuant to a plea agreement. He entered a no contest plea, and admitted that he had personally used a firearm (§ 12022.5, subd. (a)) and previously had been convicted of one prior strike (§§ 667, subds. (b) -(i), 1170.12, subd. (a) -(d) ).
Defendant was sentenced in May 2015 to a total term of 17 years and four months in state prison. He filed a notice of appeal and request for a certificate of probable cause, which the trial court granted.
DISCUSSION
Defendant contends the trial court erred when it denied his motion to dismiss the prior out-of-state convictions under Garcia even though the court found he did not receive adequate Boykin- Tahl advisements. He notes that the trial court misconstrued his motion as raising a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel, when in fact the motion was solely based on an alleged Boykin- Tahl violation. The People agree that the court erred because defendant never asserted ineffective assistance *900of counsel, but maintain the judgment should be affirmed because defendant's plea was voluntary and intelligent under the totality of the circumstances.
Although the trial court erroneously denied the motion under Garcia , supra ,
I
"In [Boykin ] the United States Supreme Court determined that a defendant who pled guilty could attack the ensuing conviction on the ground the record did not affirmatively establish a knowing and intelligent waiver of certain constitutional rights-the right to a jury trial, the right to confront witnesses, and the privilege against self-incrimination. [Citation.] Just months later, the California Supreme Court addressed the same issue in [Tahl ]. Again, the defendant alleged his guilty plea was not made voluntarily or with a complete understanding of its consequences. The Tahl court, bound by Boykin , set forth the additional requirement that the record clearly state that the defendant specifically and expressly waived each of the three enumerated constitutional rights. [Citation.] Both Tahl and Boykin involved direct challenges on an appeal from the contested conviction." (Green , supra , 81 Cal.App.4th at p. 466,
"In People v. Sumstine (1984)
The decision in Sumstine was grounded on policy considerations favoring efficiency: "Previously we had allowed a defendant to challenge a prior by seeking a writ of habeas corpus after a final judgment in which the prior had been used to enhance his sentence. [Citations.] But in Coffey we decided that 'it is clearly in the interest of *901efficient judicial administration that attacks upon the constitutional basis of prior convictions be disposed of at the earliest possible opportunity, and we are therefore of the view that, if the issue is properly raised at or prior to trial, it must be determined by the trial court.' " (Sumstine , supra , 36 Cal.3d at p. 920,
In Howard , supra , 1 Cal.4th at page 1175,
A defendant's ability to collaterally attack a prior conviction under Sumstine was called into question by the United States Supreme Court decision in Custis v. United States (1994)
Three years later, in Garcia , the California Supreme Court followed Custis in holding that "a criminal defendant may not challenge a prior conviction on the ground of ineffective assistance of counsel in the course of a current prosecution for a noncapital offense." (Garcia , supra , 14 Cal.4th at p. 956,
In Allen , supra ,
The majority in Allen expressly declined to decide whether Sumstine permits a defendant to collaterally attack a prior out-of-state conviction. (Allen , supra , 21 Cal.4th at p. 443 & fn. 7,
In Green , the Fifth District Court of Appeal followed Justice Baxter's concurrence in Allen in holding that "a defendant may not collaterally attack a prior out-of-state conviction unless there is evidence that Tahl -like requirements operated in the jurisdiction at the time of the plea." (Green , supra , 81 Cal.App.4th at pp. 470-471,
II
Following Green , the issue before us is whether defendant satisfied his burden of presenting evidence that, under Oregon law, his plea was subject to procedures corresponding to California's Tahl requirements. Defendant maintains he satisfied this burden by citing Oregon Revised Statute section 135.385.
The Oregon statute codifies Boykin by requiring the trial court to inform the defendant that, by pleading guilty or no contest, the defendant waives the right to a jury trial, the right to confront witnesses, and the privilege against self-incrimination. (See
In Cruz v. Cupp (1986)
Cruz establishes that under Oregon law a trial court may rely on a written plea petition setting forth the Boykin advisements and certification by defense counsel that defendant read and understood the document before signing it. Oregon courts are not required to expressly advise a defendant of his Boykin rights and obtain his waiver on the record. (Cf. Tahl , supra , 1 Cal.3d at p. 132,
III
Even if we were to consider defendant's collateral attack on the prior Oregon convictions, we would find that his prior no contest plea was constitutionally valid. Under the applicable federal test, "the record [must] affirmatively [demonstrate] that [the plea was] voluntary and intelligent under the totality of the circumstances." (Howard , supra , 1 Cal.4th at p. 1175,
The totality of the circumstances here shows that defendant voluntarily and intelligently pleaded no contest in the Oregon proceeding. Defendant signed a plea petition, which advised him that he had the choice of pleading not guilty, and would accordingly be afforded the right to a jury trial, the right to confront witnesses, and the privilege against self-incrimination. Defendant also acknowledged in signing the document that he was executing his plea "knowingly and voluntarily." Defense counsel certified that "[d]efendant's plea is voluntarily and understandingly made." When defendant appeared in court, the trial judge asked whether he had "a *904chance to read through it carefully and discuss it with [defense counsel] before [he] signed it." Defendant responded affirmatively. When asked whether he had "[a]ny questions about what it says or what [he was] giving up by entering this plea," defendant said he did not.
Defendant contends that his plea was not voluntary and intelligent because nothing in the record demonstrates that he was aware of and understood that he would be waiving his Boykin rights. He argues that the plea petition was insufficient because it advised him of the rights to which he was entitled if he pleaded not guilty, but did not expressly state that he was waiving those rights by pleading guilty or no contest. He also contends the trial judge's "vague" questioning during the plea colloquy fell short of affirmatively showing that defendant knew precisely what he was giving up. Defendant points to his declaration, which states that neither defense counsel nor the trial judge ever expressly advised him of his rights and the fact that he was waiving them by entering his plea.
Although were we to argue that the record does not affirmatively demonstrate that defendant expressly waived his Boykin rights, his plea may still be upheld as constitutioanlly valid under the totality of the circumstances. (See, e.g., Mosby , supra , 33 Cal.4th at pp. 364-365,
We find the language of the plea petition to be sufficiently clear to inform defendant that he agreed to waive his rights by entering a plea of no contest. Defendant does not claim that he did not or could not read or understand the plea petition. In fact, he confirmed to the trial judge that he had read the document carefully and had discussed it with defense counsel before signing it. Under the totality of these circumstances, we conclude that defendant's plea was voluntary and intelligent and therefore his prior convictions were constitutionally valid. (See Howard , supra , 1 Cal.4th at p. 1175,
DISPOSITION
The judgment is affirmed.
We concur:
MANELLA, J.
COLLINS, J.
Undesignated section references are to the Penal Code.
Boykin v. Alabama (1969)
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.