33 S.E.2d 861 | N.C. | 1945
BARNHILL, J., dissenting.
SCHENCK and SEAWELL, JJ., concur in dissent. Criminal prosecution begun in the recorder's court for Washington, Long Acre, Chocowinity and part of Bath Townships in Beaufort County, North Carolina, upon a warrant issued out of said court, charging defendant with assault upon one J. E. Roberson (1) with a deadly weapon, to wit, a bicycle, and (2) with a deadly weapon, to wit, a shotgun. *149
The record proper shows that upon trial in the recorder's court defendant pleaded guilty. Thereupon the court entered judgment reciting therein that "Upon the trial of this case the defendant pleads guilty," and ordering and adjudging that he be confined in the common jail of Beaufort County for two years to be assigned to work the roads. From this judgment defendant appealed to Superior Court.
When the case came on for hearing on such appeal the court in its discretion refused to allow defendant to withdraw the plea of guilty entered in the recorder's court and, after hearing evidence offered by both State and defendant, entered judgment that defendant be confined in the common jail of Beaufort County and assigned to work under the direction of the State Highway and Public Works Commission for a term of two years upon the charge of assault with a deadly weapon to which he had heretofore pleaded guilty. (It is noted here that in the original transcript of the record as filed in this Court on this appeal the last clause in the judgment reads: "To which charge the defendant had heretofore pleaded not guilty." But the Clerk of the Superior Court of Beaufort County, in response to request from this Court, has sent up a certified copy of the judgment as it appears of record in his office, and as so certified the clause reads: "To which charge the defendant had heretofore pleaded guilty").
Defendant excepted to this judgment and appeals to Supreme Court, and assigns error. The only assignment of error appearing in the record on this appeal is to the judgment as signed in the Superior Court. As grounds for the exception to the judgment, stated in brief filed through counsel for defendant, two questions are submitted for consideration, substantially these: First: That the imposition of the sentence of two years in prison, after having heard the evidence, as set forth in the judgment, taken in connection with the refusal of the court to allow a retraction or withdrawal of the plea of guilty in accordance with motion of defendant, constituted an abuse of discretion, designated by counsel for the defendant as "an erroneous view of the discretion" exercised in regard to both the refusal of the motion and the punishment imposed. Thus, apparently, it is conceded that in both respects the subjects were addressed to the sound discretion of the court, and are not matters of right. *150
As to the punishment imposed: The pertinent statute, G.S.,
As to refusal of motion to allow defendant to retract or withdraw the plea of guilty entered by him in recorder's court: Such a retraction is not a matter of right, and a motion to be allowed to so retract is addressed to the sound discretion of the court. S. v. Branner,
In the Warren case, supra, the Court, distinguishing it from the case S.v. Koonce,
In this connection attention has been given to the cases S. v. Ingram,
The statement in the Ingram case, supra, that the plea of defendant was admissible against him upon the trial in Superior Court must be read in connection with the facts of the case, that is, that the record of the municipal court failed to show on its face that the defendant had pleaded guilty in that court and on the trial in the Superior Court parol testimony offered by the State was admitted tending to show that one of the two defendants had pleaded guilty in the municipal court. Reference to the record reveals that exception to this evidence related to its competency. In the McKnight case, supra, the record as it came from the recorder's court failed to show that the defendant entered a plea of guilty in that court, and this Court held that, without resorting to certiorari orrecordari, the judge exceeded his authority in undertaking dehors the record to determine the question as to the plea of defendant in recorder's court. And in the case S. v. Cox,
The hearing of evidence in the Superior Court was only for the purpose of enabling the court to pass upon the validity of the judgment of the recorder's court. And while it appears from the judgment entered in Superior Court that defendant was sentenced by the Superior Court, and to a term in prison, the length of the terms of imprisonment named in the two judgments is the same. Hence, the judgment of the Superior Court is tantamount to an affirmance of the judgment of the recorder's court. Therefore, on this record we are not called upon to say whether the Superior Court may or may not impose a greater or less sentence than was imposed by the inferior court from which the appeal is taken. The plea of guilty forecloses any further consideration of the facts.
Second: That the judgment of Superior Court referred to one charge to which defendant pleaded "not guilty," and hence that it is not clear to which charge the sentence related. This is clarified by the certified *152 copy of the judgment set up at the request of this Court as set forth hereinabove in statement of the case. The plea of guilty appears to have been general, and covers all offenses charged in the warrant.
The judgment below is
Affirmed.