Criminal Practice – Guilty Plea – Knowing & Voluntary – Satellite-Based Monitoring – ‘Aggravated Offense’ – Sexual Offense

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State v. Santos. (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-07-0279, 11 pp.) (Wanda G. Bryant, J.) Appealed from Hoke County Superior Court. (Richard T. Brown, J.) N.C. App. Click here for the full text of the opinion.

Holding: Even though defendant is functionally illiterate and shows symptoms of mild mental retardation, he was found competent to stand trial, and the trial court complied with and went beyond the requirements of G.S. § 15A-1022(a) before it accepted defendant’s guilty plea.

We find no error in the trial court’s acceptance of defendant’s plea of guilty to one count each of first-degree statutory sexual offense and crime against nature and 16 counts of taking indecent liberties with children.

However, we vacate defendant’s sentence because first-degree sexual offense is not an aggravated offense within the meaning of G.S. § 14-208.6(1a) for purposes of ordering lifetime satellite-based monitoring of defendant.