Sentencing; Dangers & disadvantages of self-representation; MCR 6.005(D); People v Anderson; Waiver of right to counsel; Judgment of sentence (JOS)

The court vacated the trial court’s JOS and remanded for resentencing. Defendant was convicted of second-degree murder, felony-firearm, and possession of a short-barreled shotgun or rifle. He “received a sentence of life imprisonment (with the possibility of parole)” for second-degree murder, 2 years for his felony-firearm, and 3 to 5 years for short-barreled firearm. This appeal followed a resentencing. Defendant argued, the prosecution conceded, and the court agreed, “that the trial court did not inform him of the dangers and disadvantages of self-representation and thus did not comply with the second Anderson requirement.” The court “need not thoroughly analyze the sufficiency of a warning of the dangers and disadvantages of self-representation here, however, because there was no such warning at all.” The trial court “simply granted defendant’s request without assuring itself that [he] was asserting this right knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily. [He] hence ineffectively waived his right to counsel.” Because he “proceeded without counsel through the remainder of his resentencing proceedings, a critical stage of criminal proceedings, defendant’s invalid waiver requires that he be resentenced.