Obey v. State

Orth, J., delivered the opinion of the Court. Douglas Dewey Obey and Colleen Evette Thompson 1 contend on appeal from a judgment against each of them in the Circuit Court for Cecil County that the court erred in accepting the plea of guilty of grand larceny entered by each of them. Each presents the same arguments in support of the contention: (1) neither had a clear recollection of the facts and circumstances surrounding the commission of the crime; and (2) the court failed to inform either fully of the constitutional right against self-incrimination and the right of cross-examination of witnesses. We had occasion to review the requirements of an effective acceptance of a plea of guilty in Holloway v. State, 8 Md. App. 618 (1970).

We found that the record must show that the plea of guilty was entered by an accused: (1) voluntarily; and (2) with an intelligent understanding: (a) of the nature of the offense; and (b) of the possible consequences of the plea; and (3) unconditionally. Here the court thoroughly canvassed the matter with each accused. See Boykin v. Alabama, 89 S. Ct. 1709 ; ⁷¹⁸ Silverberg v. Warden, 7 Md. App. 657 . We find that the record affirmatively shows that the plea was voluntary as not entered by reason of coercion, terror, inducements, or subtle or blatant threats, that it was made with an intelligent understanding of its possible consequences, and that it was not conditional.

Appellants argue, however, that they did not enter the'pleas with an intelligent understanding of the nature of larceny because their explanation of the facts and circumstances of the commission of the offense “was somewhat contradictory of that plea.” Upon inquiry by the court Obey gave his version of the facts and circumstances surrounding the events leading to his arrest. He said that he and Miss Thompson had come directly from a night club in New York to Elk-ton to get married. “We had been out all night and we were sitting in a tavern around here, waiting for the bus to come and about 6:30 we left the tavern to go across the street where the bus was,” according to information they had received. It appeared that the bus usually stopped in front of the Colonial Jewelry Store. The door providing actual entrance to the store was set back from the street, so that there was a display window fronting on the street and also on the side approaching the entrance door.

It was cold so they waited for the bus beside the window in the area leading to the entrance door. As they were awaiting the bus the side window got broken, although he did not remember how — “I know it got broken.” He did remember picking rings off the ground but did not remember whether or not he took rings out of the window; “I was slightly intoxicated.” Colleen Thompson said they went to wait for the bus as Obey had recounted. Only the two of them were present when the window broke. At first she said Obey had not broken the window “intentionally,” but when asked, “How did he come to break it?”, she said that she did not know, “I don’t even remember.” She said that she picked the rings off the ground and they were in her hand when she was arrested; Obey had none in his pos ⁷¹⁹ session.

Called upon for further explanation, Obey then said that he did not remember whether he picked any rings up or not. They left the scene, going down the block. They saw the bus drive away and he went into a tavern to make a telephone call. It appeared that the bus driver saw Obey with his hand in the window “shuffling around the glass” and saw Colleen Thompson run toward the bus trying to wave it down.

From a statement Obey gave the police 2 it seemed that while they were waiting in the doorway of the jewelry store he remarked, “Look, the window is broke.” He saw “a couple of rings laying on the ground and I picked them up and I handed them to her and I was getting ready to go further into the window. My fiancee said here comes the bus, and all of a sudden the glass shattered and the alarm started ringing. 3 I panicked and I started running. I left her there, I had one ring on my pinky. I ran in a back