Michigan v. King (Opinion on Application - Remand to TC)
Annotate this CaseFrank King was charged as a fourth-offense habitual offender with breaking and entering. Before trial, defendant moved to proceed in propria persona and to terminate his relationship with his appointed counsel. The trial court granted defendant’s motion but kept appointed counsel to serve as defendant’s advisory counsel. On the first day of trial, defendant pleaded no contest in exchange for an agreement pursuant to Michigan v. Cobbs, 443 Mich 276 (1993), capping his minimum sentence at 72 months, to be served concurrently with a sentence defendant was already serving in an unrelated case. Defendant’s advisory counsel apparently handled details of the plea negotiations, and advisory counsel indicated during sentencing that he had worked out the Cobbs agreement with the prosecution. Defendant was sentenced in accordance with the Cobbs agreement, but he later filed a delayed application for leave to appeal in the Court of Appeals. Defendant argued that his conviction should have been reversed because he was denied the right to counsel at critical stages of the proceeding because his waiver of counsel was invalid. The Court of Appeals affirmed in an unpublished per curiam opinion. The Michigan Supreme Court concluded defendant’s waiver of his right to counsel was indeed invalid, and he was deprived of counsel during critical stages of the proceedings, requiring automatic reversal.
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