State Of Louisiana v. Tyler Judson

STATE OF LOUISIANA

COURT OF APPEAL, FIRST CIRCUIT

STATE OF LOUISIANA NO. 2022 KW 0152

VERSUS

TYLER JUDSON MAY 9, 2022

In Re: State of Louisana, applying for supervisory writs,

19th Judicial District Court, Parish of East Baton

Rouge, No. DC - 20- 02965.

BEFORE: GUIDRY! HOLDRIDGE, AND CHUTZ, JJ.

WRIT GRANTED. When a district court finds, even after

sentencing, that a plea of guilty is constitutionally infirm, it
retains the authority to vacate the sentence and set aside the
plea. State v. Allah, 2017- 0785 ( La. 1/ 9/ 18), 232 So. 3d 554
per curiam) ( citing State v. Lewis, 421 So. 2d 224, 226 ( La.
1982)). A constitutionally infirm guilty plea may be set aside

either by means of an appeal or postconviction relief. State v.
Dixon, 449 So. 2d 463, 464 ( La. 1984); State v. Young, 2020- 0049
La. App. 1st Cir. 11/ 6/ 20), 315 So. 3d 904, 907, writ denied,
2020- 01402 ( La. 2/ 9/ 21), 310 So. 3d 177. In order to properly
exercise its discretion and in order for the appellate court to
review the exercise of that discretion, the trial court should

conduct a hearing or inquiry on defendant' s motion to withdraw a
guilty plea. State v. McGarr, 52, 641 ( La. App. 2d Cir. 4/ 10/ 19),
268 So. 3d 1189, 1197 ( citing Lewis, 421 So. 2d at 225).

The oral request to withdraw the guilty plea was improperly
granted where the record does not show the district court

received sworn testimony or evidence regarding defendant' s
request to withdraw his guilty plea in this case. Accordingly,
the district court' s ruling granting the motion to withdraw the
guilty plea is vacated, and this matter is remanded to the
district court. On remand, the district court should first
ascertain whether defendant — bearing in mind that
may he
nonetheless be eligible for expungement in the future — desires
to withdraw his guilty plea. If he so wishes, only then should

the district court hold a contradictory hearing to determine
whether the plea is constitutionally infirm and decide whether
the plea was induced by what defendant justifiably believed to
be a plea bargain but which, as a matter of law, could not be
kept. Allah, 232 So. 3d at 554; Dixon, 449 So. 2d at 464.

JMG
GH
WRC

COURT OF APPEAL, FIRST CIRCUIT

DEPUTY CLERK OF COURT
FOR THE COURT