[OldDeckHand]

"Lind won’t let him even bring up the Constitutional grounds. Lakin’s appeal would have to be over the breach of his due process and Sixth Amendment rights."

This is why "guilty" pleas matter. To preserve that issue for appeal, Lakin would have to enter a "not-guilty" plea. He didn't.

Lakin changed his plea because he finally listened to some competent legal advice. That issue was NEVER going to be a winner on appeal, so the best course of action is to mitigate the damage already done. Generally speaking, guilty pleas come with lighter sentences (even absent plea agreements), if for no other reason that you haven't pissed off the jury panel by wasting their time with an asinine defense.

[FS11]

Lakin changed his plea because he finally listened to some competent legal advice.

201 posted on Tuesday, December 14, 2010 3:01:51 PM by OldDeckHand

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You don’t have a clue, olddeck. Competent lawyers don’t publicly state that their clients are guilty and certain of conviction 11 days before trial.

[Red Steel]

Lakin pleaded not guilty to this charge, which is the one in contention: