GREEN v. THE STATE
Annotate this CaseDonald Berry Green appealed his sentence for felony murder and aggravated assault related to the shooting death of Andre Winter. He entered a guilty plea, but years later, began filing motions for an out-of-time appeal. Green argued that his guilty plea was involuntary and unintelligent because he wasn't expressly advised on the record of his right against self-incrimination, one of the three specific rights listed in "Boykin v. Alabama" (1969) that a defendant waives when entering a guilty plea. The Supreme Court of Georgia found that the record showed Green's plea was voluntary and intelligent, despite the absence of an express advisement of his right against self-incrimination. The Court overruled its previous decisions that adopted a "three Boykin rights" approach, which automatically reversed a guilty plea if the record didn't show the defendant was expressly informed about all three rights listed in "Boykin v. Alabama". The Court held that a guilty plea is valid if the record shows it was voluntary and intelligent, regardless of whether all three rights were explicitly conveyed to the defendant. Therefore, the Court affirmed Green's convictions.
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