AKEEM R. WELCH
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
A trial court must appoint conflict-free counsel to assist an indigent defendant with a rule 3.170(l) motion to withdraw plea after sentencing before denying the motion.
[1] A defendant is entitled to court-appointed, conflict-free counsel at the critical stage of proceedings involving a motion to withdraw a plea after sentencing.
[2] The failure to appoint counsel for an indigent defendant filing a motion to withdraw a plea after sentencing is not subject to harmless error analysis.
Previewing 2 of 3 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“once a defendant indicates his desire to avail himself of the rule 3.170(l) procedure, the trial court must appoint conflict-free counsel to advise and assist the defendant in this regard.”
Court's statement of the rule regarding appointment of counsel for rule 3.170(l) motions.
Welch had previously appealed an illegal sentence and was resentenced. After resentencing, he timely filed a motion to withdraw his plea pursuant to r…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Right To Appointed Counsel cases and more on FLexlaw
VILLANTI, Judge.
Akeem R. Welch appeals an order denying his motion to withdraw plea after sentencing filed pursuant to Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.170(l). We have jurisdiction. See art. V, § 4(b)(1), Fla. Const. We agree with the State's concession of error and reverse. In November of 2020, Welch filed a motion to correct illegal sentence pursuant to rule 3.800(a). We reversed the denial of his claim
2
in ground one that the trial court illegally imposed one of his HFO sentences. See Welch v. State, 337 So. 3d 517, 518 (Fla. 2d DCA 2022). After the trial court resentenced Welch, he timely filed a motion to withdraw plea after sentencing pursuant to rule 3.170(l). The court summarily denied the motion without appointing counsel for Welch. A rule 3.170(l) motion to withdraw plea is a critical stage of the proceedings during which an indigent defendant is entitled to court-appointed, conflict-free counsel. See Smith v. State, 849 So. 2d 485, 485-86 (Fla. 2d DCA 2003); see also Lester v. State, 820 So. 2d 1078, 1078 (Fla. 1st DCA 2002) ("[O]nce a defendant indicates his desire to avail himself of the rule 3.170(l) procedure, the trial court must appoint conflict-free counsel to advise and assist the defendant in this regard."). This error is not subject to harmless error analysis. See Smith, 849 So. 2d at 486. Welch argues and the State concedes that the trial court erred by summarily denying his rule 3.170(l) motion without appointing counsel. Accordingly, we reverse the order denying the motion and direct the trial court to appoint conflict-free counsel to advise and assist Welch with the motion.
Reversed and remanded.
CASANUEVA and ATKINSON, JJ., Concur.
Opinion subject to revision prior to official publication.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Akeem R. Welch v. State (Fla. 2d DCA 2023)…r and reverse. In November of 2020, Welch filed a motion to correct illegal sentence pursuant to rule 3.800(a). We reversed the denial of his claim in ground one that the trial court illegally imposed one of his HFO sentences. See Welch v. State, 337 So. 3d 517, 518 (Fla. 2d DCA 2022). After the trial court resentenced Welch, he timely filed a motion to withdraw plea after sentencing pursuant to rule 3.170(l). The court summarily denied the motion without appointing counsel for Welch. A rule 3.170(l) moti…
-
State v. Erway (Fla. 2d DCA 2022)…apply "[a]s used in the Florida Statutes, except as otherwise provided." (Emphasis added.) As discussed above, section 322.01(27) otherwise provides a definition specific to chapter 322, and that definition controls here. See also Welch v. State, 337 So. 3d 517, 518 (Fla. 2d DCA 2022) (holding that specific statutes covering a subject area control over more general statutes). 3 Even so, that statute makes no exception for a "minibike," the term the county court employed in its ruling. We have found no lic…
-
Akeem R. Welch v. State (Fla. 2d DCA 2023)…r and reverse. In November of 2020, Welch filed a motion to correct illegal sentence pursuant to rule 3.800(a). We reversed the denial of his claim in ground one that the trial court illegally imposed one of his HFO sentences. See Welch v. State, 337 So. 3d 517, 518 (Fla. 2d DCA 2022). After the trial court resentenced Welch, he timely filed a motion to withdraw plea after sentencing pursuant to rule 3.170(l). The court summarily denied the motion without appointing counsel for Welch. A rule 3.170(l) moti…
Authorities Cited
- Lester v. State, 820 So. 2d 1078 (Fla. 1st DCA 2002)
- Vermont Smith v. State, 849 So. 2d 485 (Fla. 2d DCA 2003)
- Akeem R. Welch v. State (Fla. 2d DCA 2023)