State of Oklahoma v. Robert wayne Spybuck

Lawton, Oklahoma, pro se Defendant unsuccessfully represented himself on a DUI charge.

¶1 Following a non-jury trial, Appellant, appearing pro se, was convicted of being in Actual Physical Control of a Vehicle Under the Influence of a Controlled Dangerous Substance (47 O.S.2021, § 11-902(A)(3)) in Comanche County District Court Case No. CM-2023-137. The Honorable Susan Zwaan, Special Judge, presided at trial, found Appellant guilty, and sentenced him to one year in the Comanche County Detention Center, all suspended, and assessed a fine of $300.00. From this judgment and sentence, Appellant appeals.

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¶7 The fundamental right of the criminally accused to be represented by counsel is guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution and article II, section 20 of the Oklahoma Constitution. The Sixth Amendment right was held applicable to the states and incorporated through the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment in Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335 (1963). See also, Swanegan v. State, 1987 OK CR 180, ¶ 4, 743 P.2d 131, 132 ("An accused has the unconditional and absolute right to counsel in any felony or misdemeanor proceeding."). Of course, this right may be waived, Painter v. State, 1988 OK CR 224, ¶¶ 9-11, 762 P.2d 990, 992, but there is no evidence in this record nor any claim by the State that Appellant waived his right to counsel. Nor is there any evidence that the trial court made any inquiry into Appellant's financial ability to pay for counsel.

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¶9 In this case Appellant asked for appointed counsel and provided at least some evidence of his claimed indigency, but in the end he was forced to represent himself in a criminal trial. A conviction on such terms cannot stand and Appellant is entitled to a new trial wherein his federal and state constitutional rights to be represented by counsel are observed.

¶10 Appellant's misdemeanor conviction in Comanche County District Court Case No. CM-2023-137 is REVERSED and the case is REMANDED for new trial. Pursuant to Rule 3.15, Rules of the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals, Title 22, Ch.18, App. (2025), the MANDATE is ORDERED issued upon the delivery and filing of this decision.