Campbell v. State
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Pursuant to a plea of nolo contendere, Defendant was convicted of sex-related offenses and sentenced to forty-five years' imprisonment. Nearly eleven years after the sentence had been imposed, Defendant filed a motion to withdraw plea arguing that he was entitled to withdraw his plea because the trial court failed formally to accept his plea during the plea colloquy. The postconviction court ruled that the trial court's inadvertent failure to formally accept Defendant's plea did not entitle Defendant to withdraw his plea. The court of appeal affirmed, holding that Defendant was not entitled to withdraw his plea after he was sentenced absent a showing of manifest injustice or clear prejudice. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the actual sentencing of a defendant is a sufficient affirmative statement to the parties made in open court and on the record as to constitute formal acceptance of a plea under Fla. R. Crim. P. 3.172(g), and actual sentencing evidences the finality in the proceedings where the right to withdraw a plea is revoked.
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