People v. Monroe

OPINION OF THE COURT

The issue presented on this appeal is whether defendant was deprived of effective assistance of counsel by reason of his attorney’s joint representation of both defendant and his codefendant in negotiating a plea bargaining agreement. While we hold today that in accepting a guilty plea from a jointly represented defendant, the court must act to safeguard a defendant’s right to effective assistance of counsel, we conclude, on the facts of this case, that defendant has not established that a significant possibility of a conflict of interest existed as to warrant a reversal…