State v. Rivas, 251 So. 3d 1228

Kevin Rivas was charged with armed robbery with a firearm enhancement and attempted second degree murder for events on March 8, 2013; he pled guilty on July 17, 2015.
During plea colloquy Rivas admitted the factual basis; the trial court accepted unqualified guilty pleas and imposed concurrent hard‑labor sentences: 23 years plus a 5‑year enhancement (total 28) on count one and 28 years on count two, without benefits.
Rivas later sought to reopen the case and was granted an out‑of‑time appeal; appointed appellate counsel filed an Anders brief and moved to withdraw after finding no non‑frivolous issues.
The State and the appellate court found the plea colloquy adequate (Boykin advisals given), the sentences conformed to the plea agreement and statutory ranges, and non‑jurisdictional claims were waived by the guilty pleas.
Rivas filed a pro se brief claiming ineffective assistance of counsel (asserting promises of a lighter sentence due to cooperation and failures to investigate); the court reviewed the record on the claim and rejected it as conclusory and unsupported.
Court found an errors‑patent clerical inconsistency in the Uniform Commitment Order (UCO) regarding the sentenced breakdown and remanded for correction; convictions and sentences otherwise affirmed and counsel’s motion to withdraw granted.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Adequacy of plea colloquy (Boykin/Art. 556.1)	State: colloquy and waiver form satisfied Boykin; defendant knowingly waived rights	Rivas: contends counsel misadvised him (pro se assertions) but no specific Boykin defect alleged	Court: colloquy adequate; omission of minimum sentences was harmless error because defendant knew agreed sentences and received them
Waiver of appellate review by guilty plea (Crosby)	State: unqualified guilty pleas waive non‑jurisdictional defects and preclude appeal of pretrial rulings	Rivas: sought to challenge pretrial issues indirectly via appeal	Held: pleas unqualified; Crosby reservation not made; non‑jurisdictional claims waived
Ineffective assistance of counsel (Strickland)	N/A (prosecution opposes)	Rivas: counsel failed to investigate; promised lighter sentence for cooperation; induced plea	Court: record lacks specific evidence; claims conclusory; defendant’s sworn statements at colloquy undermine claim; no Strickland relief granted
Sentencing / clerical error in commitment paperwork	State: sentences conform to plea and statute	Rivas: not contesting substance, clerk error noted	Court: substantive sentences affirmed; remanded to correct UCO to reflect 23 years plus 5‑year enhancement (transmit corrected UCO)

Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738 (legal standard for counsel withdrawal when appeal is frivolous)
Boykin v. Alabama, 395 U.S. 238 (requirement to advise defendant of rights when accepting guilty plea)
Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (two‑prong test for ineffective assistance of counsel)
State v. Crosby, 338 So.2d 584 (plea reservation and waiver of appellate review)
State v. Bradford, 676 So.2d 1108 (Anders procedure as adopted by this court)
State v. Lynch, 441 So.2d 732 (transcript controls over conflicting commitment order)
State v. Jyles, 704 So.2d 241 (state procedural authority cited alongside Anders)
State v. McCoil, 924 So.2d 1120 (circumstances when guilty plea may be withdrawn post‑sentence)