zlg, 1/1 archive, I`m always asked whether the court can impose a harsher sentence if someone is successful in vacating their conviction or sentence under 28 U.S.C. sec 2255. My answer is always the same: It depends, but it can happen. Usually, a sec 2255 motion attacking a guilty plea opens the door for any […]
It`s long been said that a valid guilty plea goes a long way in barring post-conviction relief in the courts. While that can be true for challenges to the guilty plea itself, it`s often not true for challenges to a sentence resulting from that guilty plea. After navigating the procedural hurdles for these claims, federal […]
What happens if you win your challenge and overturn your guilty plea and then lose at trial? Can the court give you more time in prison as a penalty for successfully challenging your guilty plea? Yes, but there`s more to the story. The Supreme Court held in North Carolina v. Pearce, 395 U.S. 711 (1969), […]
More than 95% of state and federal convictions are by way of a guilty plea, and almost all of them are the result of counsel’s advice to plead guilty. A successful attack on a guilty plea would then depend on showing that counsel’s bad advice to plead guilty rendered the plea not “knowing and voluntary.” […]
It used to be that the events leading up to a guilty played out in secret. The prosecutor and the defense would get together and hammer out a deal where the defendant would agree to plead guilty in exchange for some concessions. Maybe there were some promises made, and maybe there were some threats. But […]
Zen Law Guy 