Jones v. State

Even if the trial court erred in failing to question the defendant to establish if he wanted to enter an Alford plea, the record showed that the defendant was cognizant of all of the rights he was waiving and the legal consequences of his guilty plea to one count of theft by deception.

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Mark Bay Jones pled guilty to one count of theft by deception, OCGA § 16-8-3, after he was indicted in 2011 for taking $2,611.29 from an elderly victim in a roofing scheme. He was sentenced to ten years, with five years to be served in custody. Jones now appeals from the denial of his motion to withdraw his guilty plea and contends that his five-year prison sentence was grossly disproportionate to the crime committed and that his guilty plea was not knowingly entered. Following our review, we affirm.

1. With respect to whether a sentence is “grossly disproportionate,” courts “must begin by comparing the gravity of the offense and the severity of the sentence.” Citation omitted. Adams v. State, 288 Ga. 695, 701 4 707 SE2d 359 2011. If this threshold comparison does not create an inference of gross disproportionality, the Eighth Amendment analysis extends no further. Id. “It is the rare case in which a threshold comparison of the crime committed and the sentence imposed leads to an inference of gross disproportionality.” Punctuation and footnote omitted. Bragg v. State, 296 Ga. App. 422, 424 674 SE2d 650 2009. If the sentence falls within the statutory range of punishment set by the legislature, the presumption is that the sentence does not violate the Eighth Amendment, and the “presumption remains until a defendant sets forth a factual predicate showing that such legislatively authorized punishment was so overly severe or excessive in proportion to the offense as to shock the conscience.” Citation omitted. Cuvas v. State, 306 Ga. App. 679, 683 2 703 SE2d 116 2010.

Jones v. State

Even if the trial court erred in failing to question the defendant to establish if he wanted to enter an Alford plea, the record showed that the defendant was cognizant of all of the rights he was waiving and the legal consequences of his guilty plea to one count of theft by deception.

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