2007-M-054                Pierre LaMont Leake, petitioner, Appellant, vs. State of Minnesota, Respondent.

Leake was convicted of first-degree premeditated murder for the 2003 stabbing death of Megan Fisher and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of release. 

First, an attorney’s advice falls below objectively reasonable standards, thereby constituting ineffective assistance of counsel, when the attorney’s inaccurate or misleading advice affects a defendant’s decision to reject a plea bargain and proceed to trial.   Second, a defendant is prejudiced by such ineffective assistance of counsel if there is a reasonable likelihood that the plea bargain would have been accepted had the defendant been properly advised. 

Third, because, on this record, we cannot conclusively say that appellant is not entitled to relief, we remand to the post-conviction court to hold a hearing for the purpose of determining whether defense counsel’s failure to advise appellant at the time of the plea offer that he faced a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of release constituted ineffective assistance of counsel and, if it did, whether there is a reasonable likelihood that appellant would have accepted the state’s plea offer had he been properly advised.

Fourth, the post-conviction court did not abuse its discretion when it denied appellant’s petition for post-conviction relief and dismissed appellant’s remaining claims without an evidentiary hearing.  Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded to the post-conviction court for an evidentiary hearing.

DISSENT:  Justices Hanson, Meyer, and Gildea opined:  “I would affirm the district court’s denial of Leake’s post-conviction petition on all grounds, including the claim of ineffective assistance of appellate counsel.  As to the latter, I would (1) reframe the issue as being whether appellate counsel was ineffective in failing to argue on direct appeal that trial counsel was ineffective in advising Leake on the plea offer; and (2) determine that Leake has not alleged sufficient facts to show that appellate counsel’s representation fell below an objective standard of reasonableness.|

                    Page (Russell Anderson, Paul Anderson, and Barry Anderson)

                    Dissent:  Hanson, Meyer, and Gildea

DATE OF DECISION:  August 16, 2007

RECORD NUMBER:  2007-117

FULL OPINION: 

DESCRIPTION:  [MURDER] 

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