Killeen, TX asked in Criminal Law for Texas

Q: Can I go back to court and file ineffective counseling because lawyer did not state my plea deal with ADA

If you become informant and agree to give up people to lower your case. But when you go to court there wasn’t one.

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1 Lawyer Answer

A: You can "agree" to become an informant and give up other people but that alone does not constitute cooperation with the police. You must actually work with the police in such a way that your work results in the arrest and prosecution of those other people. You don't say that you actually did that. Simply "telling on" others is not enough to constitute substantial cooperation.

Now if you did, in fact, do substantial work for the police and your lawyer didn't advise the court of your cooperation, you can can ask the judge to allow you to appeal. But there's a problem with trying to do that. What you seem to be saying is that you pleaded guilty pursuant to a plea bargain with the state (or the federal government). In Texas, when you go before the judge with your lawyer and plead guilty, the terms of your plea bargain are stated to the the court by both your lawyer and the prosecutor in your case. After the lawyers tell the judge what the agreement is, the the judge asks the defendant (you) if the agreement they just outlined is the deal you have agreed to accept. So if your lawyer, and the prosecutor, failed to correctly state the plea agreement you thought you were going to get, why didn't you tell that to the judge when he or she asked you if the plea bargain was as expected?

You need to talk with a good criminal lawyer and tell that attorney exactly how your lawyer screwed up your guilty plea hearing and why you didn't advise the judge about the problem at that hearing. You haven't stated enough of the facts of your situation for me to be able to give you a definitive answer here.

I hope this has helped you at least see some of the difficulties you would face trying to raise an ineffective assistance of counsel claim. Good luck.

1 user found this answer helpful

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