Tabitha Lykins-Greene v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.), 78A01-1705-CR-1129

Lykins‑Greene was charged with multiple felonies arising from alleged burglary and theft involving her husband; she pleaded guilty to an amended Level 5 burglary charge and the State dismissed other counts.
At the February 15, 2017 plea hearing the court thoroughly advised her of constitutional rights; she acknowledged under oath that she understood and that her plea was voluntary and had a factual basis.
She signed a written plea agreement after discussing it with counsel; the court read the plea agreement aloud and confirmed she was not coerced.
In April 2017 she sent an unverified letter requesting withdrawal of her plea and replacement of counsel, claiming counsel misled her and prevented her from testifying or pursuing exculpatory discussions.
At sentencing the court received sworn testimony from Lykins‑Greene and counsel; the court found she failed to file the statutorily required verified motion to withdraw and that her plea had been knowing and voluntary.
The trial court denied withdrawal, accepted the plea, and imposed sentence; Lykins‑Greene appealed the denial as an abuse of discretion.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the trial court abused its discretion by denying request to withdraw guilty plea	Lykins‑Greene argued counsel lied/misled her, discouraged testimony, and coerced plea; she claims innocence and wants trial	State argued plea was knowing, voluntary, court complied with plea procedures, and defendant failed to file a verified motion	Court affirmed: no abuse of discretion — plea was knowing/voluntary, defendant waived review by failing to file verified motion, and self‑serving claims of innocence insufficient

Jeffries v. State, 966 N.E.2d 773 (Ind. Ct. App. 2012) (standard for reviewing denial of motion to withdraw guilty plea and requirement of showing manifest injustice)
Brightman v. State, 758 N.E.2d 41 (Ind. 2001) (presumption in favor of trial court ruling on plea withdrawals)
Gross v. State, 22 N.E.3d 863 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014) (burden on defendant to prove by preponderance and specific facts entitlement to withdraw plea)
Carter v. State, 739 N.E.2d 126 (Ind. 2000) (unverified request to withdraw plea generally results in waiver; later innocence claims do not automatically void knowing and voluntary pleas)
Gipperich v. State, 658 N.E.2d 946 (Ind. Ct. App. 1995) (defense relying solely on defendant’s own testimony does not meet burden to show manifest injustice)