Lucas v. Warden

Murphy, C. J., delivered the opinion of the Court. On March 18, 1969, applicant Lucas pleaded guilty to four charges of robbery and was sentenced to forty years imprisonment.-No direct appeal was taken. On June 4, 1969, Lucas filed his first petition under the Post Conviction Procedure Act, contending therein (1) that his guilty plea was not freely and voluntarily entered, (2) that he was not advised of his right to appeal, and (3) that his trial counsel was incompetent and had a conflict of interest because he had previously represented a codefendant. After holding an evidentiary hearing, the post conviction trial judge, in an opinion dated April 8, 1970, held that none of the contentions afforded relief.

He reviewed the trial transcript, concluding therefrom that the guilty plea was freely and voluntarily obtained. He further concluded that even if Lucas had been denied due process of law because he was not advised of his right to appeal, since the record showed that the guilty plea was voluntarily entered there could be no merit to the contention that Lucas had been denied his right to appeal. Maryland Rule 719 b (6) requires that after imposition of sentence, court-appointed counsel “advise the accused concerning his right of appeal-,” and, if directed by the accused, assist in the preparation of an order for appeal. On its face, the Rule makes no distinction between convictions based on guilty and not guilty