David Earl Ison v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.), 24A05-1706-PC-1510

In 2011 Ison was charged with five murders; evidence included DNA, blood, and firearms; he had ~20 prior felonies and was on probation.
Prosecutor consulted capital committee and considered death penalty; Ison signed an unfiled LWOP agreement presented by defense counsel.
On March 1, 2012, the court conducted a hearing on an amended LWOP count (Count VI); Ison pled guilty to Count VI and changed pleas to guilty on Counts I–V; the court did not elicit an express, count-specific Boykin waiver on the record.
Ison was sentenced to life without parole and later filed a pro se post-conviction petition alleging his pleas were involuntary and counsel was ineffective (claims raised by amendment in 2015).
The Court of Appeals remanded for specific findings on the ineffective-assistance and voluntariness claims; on remand the post-conviction court denied relief and Ison appealed.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether pleas were involuntary for lack of Boykin waiver	Ison: court never obtained explicit, count-specific waiver; he didn’t understand rights due to intoxication/medication and prior advisals were insufficient	State: trial court advised Boykin rights at the LWOP hearing; Ison had numerous prior pleas and later acknowledged understanding; outside evidence may show waiver	Held: Pleas voluntary — court’s advisements plus Ison’s background and comments show he knew he was waiving Boykin rights; credibility findings upheld
Whether trial counsel was ineffective in securing plea via deception and failing to ensure Boykin waiver	Ison: counsel misled him about formal death-penalty filing, colluded to withhold sentencing exposure, failed to pursue withdrawal or ensure appeal rights	State: counsel negotiated to avoid death penalty; overwhelming evidence and Ison’s record made plea objectively reasonable; no corroboration of deception; counsel’s conduct not shown deficient or prejudicial	Held: Ineffective-assistance claim denied — no deficient performance or prejudice shown; objectively reasonable defendant wouldn’t likely have insisted on trial

Boykin v. Alabama, 395 U.S. 238 (trial court must ensure guilty plea is intelligent and voluntary)
Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (two-part test for ineffective assistance)
Hill v. Lockhart, 474 U.S. 52 (prejudice standard for counsel errors affecting guilty pleas)
Ponce v. State, 9 N.E.3d 1265 (post-conviction: defendant meets threshold if Boykin advisement absent; State may prove actual understanding)
Dewitt v. State, 755 N.E.2d 167 (formal advisement not required; defendant must know he is waiving Boykin rights)
Turman v. State, 392 N.E.2d 483 (guilty plea record must demonstrate advisement and waiver)