People v. La Salle Washington

In 1967, defendant shot and killed the owner of a market. When a jury was unable to reach a verdict on the charged offense of first-degree felony murder, the trial court declared a mistrial. Several weeks later, defendant pleaded guilty of second-degree murder. He was sentenced to a parolable term of life imprisonment.

Defendant did not file a direct appeal. However, he later moved to withdraw his guilty plea because the trial court had failed to advise him that he had the right to testify at trial. The trial court denied the motion, and the Court of Appeals denied leave to appeal for lack of…