STATE OF NEW JERSEY VS. R v. (15-05-0618, BERGEN COUNTY AND STATEWIDE) (RECORD IMPOUNDED)

RECORD IMPOUNDED
NOT FOR PUBLICATION WITHOUT THE
APPROVAL OF THE APPELLATE DIVISION
This opinion shall not "constitute precedent or be binding upon any court." Although it is posted on the
internet, this opinion is binding only on the parties in the case and its use in other cases is limited. R. 1:36-3.
SUPERIOR COURT OF NEW JERSEY
APPELLATE DIVISION
DOCKET NO. A-0427-18T3
STATE OF NEW JERSEY,
Plaintiff-Respondent,
v.
R.V.,
Defendant-Appellant.
_____________________________
Submitted November 13, 2019 – Decided December 23, 2019
Before Judges Yannotti and Hoffman.
On appeal from the Superior Court of New Jersey, Law
Division, Bergen County, Accusation No. 15-05-0618.
Joseph E. Krakora, Public Defender, attorney for
appellant (Monique D. Moyse, Designated Counsel, on
the brief).
Mark Musella, Bergen County Prosecutor, attorney for
respondent (William P. Miller, Assistant Prosecutor, of
counsel and on the brief).
PER CURIAM
Defendant appeals from a Law Division order entered on July 12, 2018,
denying his petition for post-conviction relief (PCR) without an evidentiary
hearing. For the reasons that follow, we affirm.
Bergen County Accusation Number 15-05-0618 charged defendant with
third-degree endangering the welfare of a child, N.J.S.A. 2C:24-4(a)(1). On
May 27, 2015, defendant, represented by counsel and pursuant to a negotiated
plea agreement, pleaded guilty to making sexually inappropriate remarks and
then touching the buttocks of six-year-old E.F.,1 with the purpose of debauching
or impairing her morals. The State recommended a suspended three-year term
of imprisonment subject to parole supervision for life (PSL). Defendant
completed his plea form and supplemental plea forms pertaining to "Certain
Sexual Offenses."
On December 18, 2015, defendant appeared for sentencing. Prior to
imposing sentence, the court sought to clarify comments defendant allegedly
made during his Avenel evaluation that the crime was "an accident." Defendant
disavowed any such comments and re-entered his guilty plea. The court then
sentenced defendant to a suspended three-year term of imprisonment, Megan's
Law compliance, and PSL.
1
We use initials to protect the identity of the minor child.
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2
Defendant appealed and challenged his sentence on the Excessive
Sentence Oral Argument calendar. R. 2:9-11. We affirmed. State v. Vrabel,
No. A-2695-15 (App. Div. Sept. 21, 2016).
On February 13, 2017, defendant filed a pro se petition for PCR, alleging
he received ineffective assistance of counsel. In a supplemental certification,
defendant alleged plea counsel failed to adequately explain the conditions of
PSL, and never advised him his conviction could subject him to civil
commitment. Defendant sought an evidentiary hearing on his petition.
On July 13, 2018, after hearing oral argument, the PCR court issued a
written decision denying defendant's petition without an evidentiary hearing.
The court found defendant failed to present a prima facie case of ineffective
assistance of counsel as he completed the applicable plea forms, which the court
again reviewed with defendant prior to sentencing. The court also found
defendant's claim procedurally barred, pursuant to Rule 3:22-4.
This appeal followed, with defendant presenting the following points of
argument:
POINT I
[DEFENDANT] IS ENTITLED TO AN
EVIDENTIARY HEARING ON HIS CLAIM THAT
HIS ATTORNEY RENDERED INEFFECTIVE
ASSISTANCE OF COUNSEL BY FAILING TO
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INFORM HIM ADEQUATELY OF THE
REQUIREMENTS AND CONSEQUENCES OF HIS
PLEA, INCLUDING PAROLE SUPERVISION FOR
LIFE AND CIVIL COMMITMENT.
POINT II
THE PCR COURT ERRONEOUSLY RULED THAT
[DEFENDANT'S] PETITION WAS
PROCEDURALLY BARRED
Following our review of the record and the applicable law, we affirm the
PCR court's decision on the merits, as the record contains no credible evidence
supporting defendant's claim of ineffective assistance of counsel. Accordingly,
we decline to address the procedural grounds cited by the PCR court as an
alternative basis for denying defendant's petition.
Claims of ineffective assistance of counsel are considered under the two-
part test enunciated in Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 687 (1984), and
adopted by our Supreme Court in State v. Fritz, 105 N.J. 42, 58 (1987). The
Strickland test requires a defendant to show that the performance of his attorney
was deficient, and counsel's deficient performance prejudiced the defense.
Strickland, 466 U.S. at 687.
To meet the first part of the Strickland test, a defendant must establish that
his attorney "made errors so serious that counsel was not functioning as the
'counsel' guaranteed the defendant by the Sixth Amendment." Ibid. The
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defendant must rebut the "strong presumption that counsel's conduct falls within
the wide range of reasonable professional assistance[.]" Id. at 689.
Moreover, to satisfy the second part of the Strickland test, a defendant
must show "that counsel's errors were so serious as to deprive defendant of a
fair trial, a trial whose result is reliable." Id. at 687. A defendant must establish
"a reasonable probability that, but for counsel's unprofessional errors, the result
of the proceeding would have been different." Id. at 694. The second prong of
the Strickland test also requires a defendant to show that counsel's alleged
deficiency caused prejudice. Fritz, 105 N.J. at 52.
We are convinced the PCR court correctly determined that the record
failed to present a prima facie case of ineffective assistance of counsel.
Defendant completed extensive supplemental plea forms, which informed him
that he would be subject to PSL and potentially subject to civil commitment.
During the plea colloquy, defendant stated that he 1) read the supplemental
forms fully; 2) signed the forms of his own free will; 3) spoke with his attorney
about the forms prior to signing them; 4) understood each of the conditions set
forth in the forms; 5) understood all of the court's questions regarding the forms;
and 6) was satisfied with his attorney.
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Defendant cannot take a new position when seeking PCR that so blatantly
and inexplicably contradicts his declarations in open court at the time of his
plea. See State v. Blake, 444 N.J. Super. 285, 299 (App. Div. 2016) ("Defendant
may not create a genuine issue of fact, warranting an evidentiary hearing, by
contradicting his prior statements without explanation."). Further, defendant
failed to show that a decision to reject the favorable plea offer would have been
rational, but instead offered only a bare assertion that he would have proceeded
to trial if his attorney informed him regarding PSL and civil commitment.
Therefore, defendant failed to meet either prong of the Strickland test.
We further reject defendant's contention that an evidentiary hearing was
required as defendant failed to demonstrate a "reasonable likelihood of
succeeding" on his ineffective assistance claim. State v. Preciose, 129 N.J. 451,
462 (1992). Because defendant failed to make out a prima facie case of
ineffective assistance of counsel, the PCR court properly ruled on defendant's
petition without an evidentiary hearing, and properly denied his petition.
Affirmed.
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