Summary
The Supreme Court of Georgia held that the record did not establish that Marshall Foskey knowingly and voluntarily waived his constitutional rights when entering 18 guilty pleas in Coffee County. Because neither the plea transcript nor the extrinsic evidence demonstrated an informed waiver of the rights identified in Boykin v. Alabama, the court reversed the denial of habeas relief.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether the record supported a finding that Foskey's 18 Coffee County guilty pleas were knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily entered.
- Whether the State met its burden in habeas proceedings to establish a valid waiver of the constitutional rights relinquished by the guilty pleas through the plea record or extrinsic evidence.
Holdings
- A trial court errs by accepting a guilty plea without an affirmative showing that the plea was knowing and voluntary; the record must establish the defendant's voluntary waiver of the constitutional rights relinquished by the plea, and waiver will not be presumed from a silent record.
- In a habeas proceeding, the State bears the burden of establishing that a guilty plea was knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily entered, either through the plea-hearing record or through extrinsic evidence that affirmatively fills a silent record. The State failed to meet that burden here.
Key quotations
“It is error for a trial court to accept a guilty plea without an affirmative showing that it was intelligent and voluntary since a guilty plea which is not voluntary and knowing is "obtained in violation of due process and is therefore void."” (277 Ga. at 481)
“Inasmuch as the record does not support a finding that petitioner was advised of his constitutional rights when he entered his pleas and that he made a knowing and intelligent waiver of those rights, we must conclude the habeas court erred when it found that the pleas passed constitutional scrutiny and when it denied petitioner habeas relief.” (277 Ga. at 482)
Factual background
In 1993, Marshall Foskey entered guilty pleas to 18 burglary counts in Coffee County as part of a multi-jurisdiction plea arrangement. The five-page Coffee County plea transcript did not show that the trial court advised him of the constitutional rights waived by pleading guilty; a preprinted form stated only that he had the right to plead not guilty and be tried by a jury. At the habeas hearing, trial counsel testified about his usual practice but could not establish that Foskey had been advised of all three constitutional rights identified in Boykin.
Procedural history
Foskey challenged the constitutional validity of 18 guilty pleas entered in Coffee County in 1993. The habeas court denied relief, and the Supreme Court of Georgia granted a certificate of probable cause to determine whether the record supported the finding that the pleas were constitutionally valid. The Supreme Court reversed the denial of habeas relief.