United States v. Herrera

F I L E D
United States Court of Appeals
Tenth Circuit
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS JUN 5 1998
TENTH CIRCUIT PATRICK FISHER
Clerk
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
No. 97-6235
(D.C. No. CIV-96-1811-T)
v.
(D.C. No. CR-92-209-T)
(W.D. Okla.)
RAFAEL ANTONIO HERRERA,
Defendant-Appellant.
ORDER AND JUDGMENT *
Before SEYMOUR, Chief Judge, BRORBY and BRISCOE, Circuit Judges.
After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel has determined
unanimously that oral argument would not materially assist the determination of
this appeal. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a); 10th Cir. R. 34.1.9. The cause is
therefore ordered submitted without oral argument.
*
This order and judgment is not binding precedent, except under the
doctrines of law of the case, res judicata, or collateral estoppel. The court
generally disfavors the citation of orders and judgments; nevertheless, an order
and judgment may be cited under the terms and conditions of 10th Cir. R. 36.3.
Rafael Antonio Herrera brought this action under 28 U.S.C. § 2255asserting that he was denied effective assistance of counsel and his right to due
process in connection with his guilty plea. The district court denied relief, ruling
that his claims are in essence the same ones he raised on direct appeal and that
they therefore may not be reasserted in this proceeding. The court also denied
Mr. Herrera’s request for a certificate of appealability as required by 28 U.S.C. §
2253(c)(1)(B). We deny his request as well and dismiss his appeal.
Mr. Herrera was charged in a one-count indictment with conspiracy to
possess with intent to distribute “cocaine (powder) and/ or cocaine base (crack).”
Aplt. App. at 2. After a jury had been selected, he decided to change his plea. A
Rule 11 hearing was held, at which Mr. Herrera entered a guilty plea and agreed
that the amount of cocaine involved was between five and fifteen kilos. Upon
receiving a copy of the Presentence Report, 1 however, Mr Herrera again changed
his mind and moved at sentencing to withdraw his plea. The court held an
evidentiary hearing to address Mr. Herrera’s claim that when he pled guilty, he
believed he was pleading only to a conspiracy involving cocaine powder. After
the hearing, and upon reviewing the record of the guilty plea proceedings and the
1
Mr. Herrera has not placed the Presentence Report in the record on
appeal. It appears undisputed, however, that the Report recommended attributing
almost fifteen kilos of crack cocaine to Mr. Herrera as a result of his participation
in the charged conspiracy, which would produce a sentence under the guidelines
of life in prison.
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briefs filed by the parties, the district court denied the motion, holding that “the
record is very clear that defendant was specifically aware of the charge in the
indictment, that cocaine and/or cocaine base were the substances that were the
subject of the conspiracy, and the maximum possible punishment -- life
imprisonment -- for his plea of guilty to that charge.” Id. at 56. Mr. Herrera
argued on appeal that his plea was involuntary because of his belief that only
cocaine powder was involved. We rejected that argument, concluding the district
court had not abused its discretion in finding that Mr Herrera “knew that the
maximum sentence for the crime for which he pled guilty was life, [and] that he
pled guilty to a conspiracy relating to ‘cocaine and/or cocaine base.’” United
States v. Herrera, No. 93-6100, 1994 WL 36766 (10th Cir. Feb. 8, 1994).
Mr. Herrera then brought this section 2255 petition, asserting inter alia that
he was denied the effective assistance of counsel in deciding whether to plead
guilty because his counsel misled him with respect to the crime to which he was
pleading and the sentence he would receive. Mr. Herrera asserted he would have
insisted on going to trial had his counsel properly advised him. The district court
held that these claims “are thinly disguised versions” of the issues raised in Mr.
Herrera’s direct appeal. We agree. Whether Mr. Herrera’s guilty plea was
involuntary was resolved after an evidentiary hearing in the prior proceeding and
affirmed on direct appeal. An ineffective assistance claim may only be raised
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after a guilty plea if the plea was involuntary as a result of counsel’s
ineffectiveness. See generally Hill v. Lockhart, 474 U.S. 52 (1985). This court’s
prior holding that the plea was voluntary is thus dispositive of Mr. Herrera’s
claim of incompetent counsel.
We accordingly conclude that Mr. Herrera has failed to make “a substantial
showing of the denial of a constitutional right,” 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(2), and his
appeal is DISMISSED.
ENTERED FOR THE COURT
Stephanie K. Seymour
Chief Judge
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