Ohio Criminal Appeals Lawyer Blog

In golf, a "mulligan" is a do-over.  Hit it in the water?  Take a mulligan and hit another one.  A  do-over is what a defendant gets after his guilty plea is reversed.  The Eighth District Court of Appeals of Ohio just reversed a conviction on a guilty plea since the trial judge failed to inform the defendant of the potential fine that accompanied his plea of guilty to one count of rape with a sexual violent predator specification.  The Eighth District found that the trial court failed to substantially comply with the requirements of Criminal Rule 11(C) when it failed to mention anything about the potential fine.  Read the full decision by clicking here.  So if you have pleaded guilty and are wishing you could take a "mulligan," one thing your lawyer should check is if you faced a potential fine and whether you were informed of that fine before you pleaded guilty.