United States V. Dominguez Benitez - The Court's Decision

The Court's Decision

The Supreme Court granted review on the narrow issue of on what basis a court's failure to comply with Rule 11 constitutes reversible error, and unanimously reversed. Justice David Souter wrote the majority opinion, which seven Justices joined. Justice Antonin Scalia wrote a separate opinion concurring in the judgment.

The Court stated that even for preserved errors, only those that structurally "undermine the fairness of a criminal proceeding as a whole" require reversal without a consideration of the effect the error had on the proceeding. The omission of a Rule 11 warning alone does not fall into this category. Furthermore, the Rule 52 phrase "error that affects substantial rights," which is used in Rule 52, "has previously been taken to mean error with a prejudicial effect on the outcome of a judicial proceeding." The Court concluded by holding that "a defendant who seeks reversal of his conviction after a guilty plea, on the ground that the district court committed plain error under Rule 11, must show a reasonable probability that, but for the error, he would not have entered the plea." The Court explained that a reasonable probability is one that is "sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome" of the proceeding.

In the Court's view—essentially the same as Judge Tallman's—the Court of Appeals' standard failed because it did not consider record evidence that tended to show that any misunderstanding was inconsequential, or what the relative significance of the factors involved in Benitez' plea decision were regardless of the Rule 11 error. The Court acknowledged that the standard it imposed would be very rarely met, but that it was still easier than if the defendant had to prove the claim by a preponderance of the evidence.

Though the Supreme Court did not explicitly decide whether Benitez met the proper standard, its opinion nonetheless proceeded with an unfavorable analysis of his case. The Court believed that his statements in the record showed that he may have been confused about the substantive law of the safety valve provision, but not that there was a "causal link" between his confusion and the Rule 11 violation. The strength of the government's case was also a factor, and the Court did not think that the proper Rule 11 warning would have changed his "assessment of his strategic position." This was especially true because the written plea agreement included the warning that it would be irrevocable, and it had been read to him in Spanish. The Court accordingly reversed the Court of Appeals, and remanded the case.