Oral argument:
State Washington v. Kristopher Martin Korsakas (Was Kristopher Korsakas entitled to have an attorney argue his motion to withdraw his guilty plea?) Case #104065-2
- During his trial, Kristopher Korsakas entered a guilty plea, which the court accepted. He moved to withdraw that guilty plea during his sentencing hearing. Under CrR 4.2(f), “[t]he court shall allow a defendant to withdraw the defendant’s plea of guilty whenever it appears that the withdrawal is necessary to correct a manifest injustice.” Defense counsel did not present the motion. Instead, the sentencing judge allowed Korsakas to present his motion himself and denied it. Korsakas contends he was denied counsel at a critical stage of the prosecution. Denial of counsel at a critical stage of prosecution is structural error that requires automatic reversal. State v. Heng, 2 Wn.3d 384, 392, 539 P.3d 13 (2023). Was Korsakas entitled to have an attorney argue his motion to withdraw his guilty plea?