State v. Byrd

Appellant contends that the Court of Appeals should be reversed because his guilty plea was in violation of the Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination and because it resulted from an unconstitutional denial of his right to counsel.

Appellant contends in part that the judge’s involvement in the plea negotiation process rendered his plea involuntary and violative of the Fifth Amendment. Because we dispose of the case on this ground, we do not reach the merits of appellant’s other claims.

The Fifth Amendment states that no person “shall be compelled* * * to be a witness against himself.”…