Lawton v. State, 645 S.E.2d 571 (Ga. Ct. App. 2007). · Go Syfert
Lawton v. State, 645 S.E.2d 571 (Ga. Ct. App. 2007). Cases Citing This Book View Copy Cite
38 citation events (38 in the last 25 years) across 2 distinct courts.
Strongest positive: Charles v. the State (gactapp, 2016-09-26)
Treatment trajectory · 2007 → 2026 · click a year to view as-of
2007 2016 2026
Top citers, strongest first. 18 distinct citers. How cited ↗
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Charles v. the State
Ga. Ct. App. · 2016 · confidence medium
See also Simmons v. State, 315 Ga. App. 82, 84 (2) ( 726 SE2d 573 ) (2012) (determining that the appellant, “having availed himself of the First Offender Act, did not retain the right to withdraw his guilty plea as a matter of right pending entry of an adjudication of guilt”); Spencer, supra at 630-631 (2) (rejecting appellant’s contention that his original “sentence was void, therefore, his motion [to withdraw his guilty plea] was timely, and he had a right to withdraw his guilty plea,” explaining that appellant’s argument that “his aggravated assault conviction[ ] should have b…
cited Cited as authority (rule) Deshawn Rahmel Green v. State
Ga. Ct. App. · 2013 · confidence medium
Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45, 46 ( 645 SE2d 571 ) (2007).
cited Cited as authority (rule) Green v. State
Ga. Ct. App. · 2013 · confidence medium
Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45, 46 ( 645 SE2d 571 ) (2007).
cited Cited as authority (rule) Riggs v. State
Ga. Ct. App. · 2012 · confidence medium
Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45, 46 ( 645 SE2d 571 ) (2007).
cited Cited as authority (rule) Darren Riggs v. State
Ga. Ct. App. · 2012 · confidence medium
Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45, 46 ( 645 SE2d 571 ) (2007). 1 As a threshold matter, we address the deficiencies in Riggs’s appellate brief, which fails to comply with our Rule 25.
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Murray v. State
Ga. Ct. App. · 2011 · confidence medium
The Supreme Court of Georgia has held that OCGA § 15-6-23 “is sufficiently broad to authorize a superior court judge to accept a guilty plea and enter sentence in any county within his circuit.” Barksdale v. Ricketts, 233 Ga. 60, 62 ( 209 SE2d 631 ) (1974). 5 Murray v. State, 265 Ga. App. 119, 121 ( 592 SE2d 898 ) (2004). 6 Maddox v. State, 278 Ga. 823, 826 (4) ( 607 SE2d 587 ) (2005) (punctuation omitted). 7 Hunter v. State, 294 Ga. App. 583, 584 (1) ( 669 SE2d 533 ) (2008) (punctuation omitted). 8 466 U. S. 668 (104 SC 2052, 80 LE2d 674) (1984). 9 Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45, 46 ( …
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Teemer v. State
Ga. Ct. App. · 2010 · confidence medium
See OCGA § 17-10-6.1 (a) (6), (b) (2004). 5 See OCGA § 17-10-6.1 (c) (3) (2004): Any sentence imposed for the first conviction of any serious violent felony [including aggravated sodomy as listed in subsection (a) (6)] other than a sentence of life imprisonment or life without parole or death shall be served in its entirety as imposed by the sentencing court and shall not be reduced by any form of parole or early release. 6 See Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45, 47 ( 645 SE2d 571 ) (2007). 7 (Citations and punctuation omitted.) Mock v. State, 218 Ga. App. 514, 517 (2) ( 462 SE2d 429 ) (1995);…
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Coats v. State
Ga. Ct. App. · 2010 · confidence medium
See Martinez, 284 Ga. at 141-142 (4) (decision not to pursue affirmative defense of insanity based upon post-traumatic stress disorder was a reasonable strategic one, where, among other things, defendant was not prepared to admit that he committed the underlying violent act, and defense counsel believed that jury would not accept such a defense as a plausible explanation for why defendant was violent); Radford, 281 Ga. at 304-305 (2) (decision not to pursue mental health defense was a reasonable strategic one where defense counsel believed that such a defense would have detracted from what he …
discussed Cited as authority (rule) Hunter v. State
Ga. Ct. App. · 2008 · confidence medium
Thus, Hunter’s motion to withdraw his guilty plea was filed within the term of court in which his sentence was entered. 3 Maddox v. State, 278 Ga. 823, 826 (4) ( 607 SE2d 587 ) (2005). 4 McDowell v. State, 282 Ga. App. 754, 755 ( 639 SE2d 644 ) (2006). 5 Hill v. Lockhart, 474 U. S. 52 (106 SC 366, 88 LE2d 203) (1985). 6 Strickland v. Washington, 466 U. S. 668 (104 SC 2052, 80 LE2d 674) (1984). 7 Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45, 46 ( 645 SE2d 571 ) (2007). 8 Brown v. State, 280 Ga. App. 767, 771 (1) ( 634 SE2d 875 ) (2006). 9 Lowe v. State, 259 Ga. App. 674, 676 (2) ( 578 SE2d 284 ) (2003). …
cited Cited as authority (rule) King v. State
Ga. Ct. App. · 2007 · confidence medium
See Patterson, 259 Ga. App. at 633 (4); Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45, 47 ( 645 SE2d 571 ) (2007).
discussed Cited "see" Melvin Walton v. State (2×)
Ga. Ct. App. · 2021 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45, 47 ( 645 SE2d 571 ) (2007) (counsel’s decision not to file a motion to suppress was strategic and did not fall outside the wide range of reasonable professional assistance). (c) Walton also contends that he received ineffective assistance when his plea counsel did not inform him about his co-defendant’s guilty plea.
discussed Cited "see" Nelson v. the State (2×)
Ga. Ct. App. · 2014 · signal: see · confidence high
See generally Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45, 47 ( 645 SE2d 571 ) (2007) (noting that “the trial court, which sat as the finder of fact for purposes of the . . . hearing, was entitled to disbelieve” the defendant); Matheson v. State, 249 Ga. App. 200 , 201 *303 (1) ( 547 SE2d 774 ) (2001) (“In a bench trial, the trial court weighs the evidence and determines the credibility of witnesses.”).
discussed Cited "see" Andrews v. State (2×)
Ga. Ct. App. · 2014 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45, 46 ( 645 SE2d 571 ) (2007).
discussed Cited "see" Ronald Bernard Andrews v. State (2×)
Ga. Ct. App. · 2014 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45, 46 ( 645 SE2d 571 ) (2007).
discussed Cited "see" Andrews v. State (2×)
Ga. Ct. App. · 2013 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45, 46 ( 645 SE2d 571 ) (2007).
discussed Cited "see" Ronald Bernard Andrews v. State (2×)
Ga. Ct. App. · 2013 · signal: see · confidence high
See Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45, 46 ( 645 SE2d 571 ) (2007).
discussed Cited "see" Skinner v. State (2×)
Ga. Ct. App. · 2009 · signal: accord · confidence high
Accord Collier v. State, 281 Ga. App. 646, 647 ( 637 SE2d 72 ) (2006). 8 See Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45, 47 ( 645 SE2d 571 ) (2007). 9 See generally Johnson v. State, 275 Ga. 538, 540 (2) ( 570 SE2d 289 ) (2002). 10 See Foster v. State, 281 Ga. App. 584, 585-586 (2) ( 636 SE2d 759 ) (2006). 11 (Citations and footnotes omitted.) Duque v. State, 271 Ga. App. 154 (1) ( 608 SE2d 738 ) (2004). 12 (Punctuation and footnote omitted.) Henry v. State, 284 Ga. App. 439, 440 (2) ( 644 SE2d 191 ) (2007). 13 See Duque, supra. 14 See generally Cameron v. State, 295 Ga. App. 670, 673 (3) (a) ( 673 SE2d…
discussed Cited "see, e.g." Perera v. State (2×)
Ga. · 2014 · signal: see, e.g. · confidence low
See, e.g., Lawton v. State, 285 Ga. App. 45 ( 645 SE2d 571 ) (2007). (c) Finally, Alma contends that trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance by failing to provide any defense to the charges of arson and, instead, relying on the sole defense of venue to the murder charge.
Retrieving the full opinion text from the archive…
Lawton
v.
the State
A07A0827.
Court of Appeals of Georgia.
Apr 12, 2007.
645 S.E.2d 571
2007 Ga. App. LEXIS 422
Steven L. Sparger, for appellant., Spencer Lawton, Jr., District Attorney, Russell B. Mabrey, Jr., Assistant District Attorney, for appellee.
Blackburn, Ruffin, Bernes.
Cited by 19 opinions  |  Published
Blackburn, Presiding Judge.

Following the denial of his motion to withdraw his guilty plea to trafficking in cocaine, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime, and providing a false name and date of birth to police, Alasan Lawton appeals, contending that his trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance, which resulted in a manifest injustice. We disagree and affirm.

The record shows that in April 2005, police searched a house pursuant to a warrant and discovered Lawton, reaching for a loaded assault rifle, in a bedroom where digital scales, cocaine, and nearly $1,000 in cash were subsequently found. Lawton was arrested and indicted on five charges related to the weapon and the drugs. Lawton initially sought a jury trial, which was held in October 2005. However, during the jury’s deliberation, Lawton elected to enter a negotiated plea of guilty, allowing him to avoid a potential life sentence as a recidivist. Approximately two weeks after he was sentenced in accordance with the negotiated plea, Lawton moved to withdraw his plea. Following a hearing at which Lawton argued his trial counsel was ineffective, the trial court denied his motion, giving rise to this appeal.

[*46] Because Lawton’s sentence had already been pronounced, “withdrawal of [his] guilty plea is allowed only to correct a manifest injustice, and the trial court’s refusal to allow withdrawal will not be disturbed on appeal absent a manifest abuse of discretion.” (Punctuation omitted.) McDowell v. State. 1 “[I]n determining the motion, the trial court is the final arbiter of all factual disputes raised by the evidence. If evidence supports the trial court’s findings, we must affirm.” (Citation and punctuation omitted.) Norris v. State. 2

Lawton contends that his conviction resulted in a manifest injustice because he received ineffective assistance of counsel at trial. See, e.g., State v. Evans. 3

In Hill v. Lockhart, [4] the United States Supreme Court established the test for reviewing claims of ineffective assistance of counsel in the context of a guilty plea. The Court held that a defendant who pleads guilty and who seeks to overturn his conviction because of counsel’s errors must meet the now familiar two-part test of Strickland v. Wash ington [5] — deficient performance and prejudice. The analysis of counsel’s performance is similar whether in the context of a trial or a guilty plea.

(Punctuation omitted.) Heyward v. Humphrey. [6] “In evaluating an attorney’s performance for the purpose of determining the first prong of the test, there is a strong presumption that counsel’s conduct falls within the wide range of reasonable professional assistance.” (Punctuation omitted.) Brown v. State. 7

Here, Lawton argues that his trial counsel’s performance was deficient in that his counsel failed to move to suppress evidence found pursuant to a search warrant that was based on an unsigned affidavit. However, at the hearing on Lawton’s motion to withdraw, Law-ton’s trial counsel testified that because Lawton told him that Lawton did not live at the house where he and the drugs were found, trial counsel believed Lawton did not have standing to challenge the warrant. See, e.g., United States v. Salvucci [8] (“an illegal search only violates the rights of those who have a legitimate expectation of[*47] privacy in the invaded place”) (punctuation omitted). According to trial counsel, Lawton told him that Lawton was briefly visiting a girl at the house where the drugs were found, that the drugs were not his, and that he did not have any control over them. This account is corroborated by Lawton’s earlier pro se motion to withdraw his guilty plea, which stated that Lawton did not live at the house and did not possess the drugs. Therefore, the trial attorney believed that to establish standing to challenge the search warrant he would have had to contradict this information. Although Lawton disputed those facts at the hearing on the motion to withdraw, the trial court, which sat as the finder of fact for purposes of the withdrawal hearing, was entitled to disbelieve him, which the court expressly did in its order. See Norris v. State, supra, 277 Ga. App. at 292 (1); Rios v. State. 9

Decided April 12, 2007 Steven L. Sparger, for appellant. Spencer Lawton, Jr., District Attorney, Russell B. Mabrey, Jr., Assistant District Attorney, for appellee.

“A claim of ineffective assistance of counsel is judged by whether counsel rendered reasonably effective assistance, not by a standard of errorless counsel or by hindsight.” Hooks v. State. 10 Lawton now points to evidence made available to trial counsel during discovery that tended to show that Lawton did live at the house, in contradiction of Lawton’s statements to his attorney (and Lawton’s pro se motion to withdraw his plea). However, Lawton’s trial counsel testified that, in light of the statements by Lawton that he did not live in the house, and because several other people were linked to the house, trial counsel pursued an “equal access” strategy of distancing Lawton from the house and the drugs, instead of associating Lawton with the house in contradiction of what his client had told him. In light of the representations made by Lawton to his trial counsel, such a strategic decision did not fall outside the wide range of reasonable professional assistance acceptable at trial. Accordingly, as Lawton did not satisfy the Strickland standard for demonstrating ineffective assistance of counsel, the trial court correctly denied Lawton’s motion to withdraw his plea.

Judgment affirmed.

Ruffin and Bernes, JJ., concur.
1

McDowell v. State, 282 Ga. App. 754, 755 (639 SE2d 644) (2006).

2

Norris v. State, 277 Ga. App. 289, 292 (1) (626 SE2d 220) (2006).

3

State v. Evans, 265 Ga. 332, 336 (3) (454 SE2d 468) (1995).

4

Hill v. Lockhart, 474 U. S. 52 (106 SC 366, 88 LE2d 203) (1985).

5

Strickland v. Washington, 466 U. S. 668 (104 SC 2052, 80 LE2d 674) (1984).

6

Heyward v. Humphrey, 277 Ga. 565, 566 (592 SE2d 660) (2004).

7

Brown v. State, 280 Ga. App. 767, 771 (1) (634 SE2d 875) (2006).

8

United States v. Salvucci, 448 U. S. 83, 91-92 (II) (B) (100 SC 2547, 65 LE2d 619) (1980).

9

Rios v. State, 281 Ga. 181, 182 (2) (637 SE2d 20) (2006).

10

Hooks v. State, 280 Ga. 164, 165 (3) (626 SE2d 114) (2006).