Attorney James Wirth Clarifies Deadline Computation for Plea Withdrawal
Are legal deadlines and calendar days or business days in Oklahoma? I am Tulsa attorney James Wirth that’s the question we have. And it’s coming from a new case recently decided and published by the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals 2024 OKCR 15. And that deals with the timeline for a person to withdraw the plea of guilt.
So essentially this person was represented by an Tulsa attorney and they entered a plea and they were sentenced and then they wanted to withdraw that plea and they were advised at the time it was entered because part of the lump in the normal paperwork that they’ve got ten days if they want to request to withdraw the plea they’ve got ten days to do so. That doesn’t mean it’s going to be granted, it’s almost always not granted, but if you do it at all, it must be done within ten days.
Understanding the Difference in Computation
So what that person did was that he then on the 13th day-ish talked to a Tulsa criminal appeals attorney and got that attorney to, represented him. Got that attorney to file a motion to withdraw the plea at that time and the question is whether that ten day rule is ten business days or is it ten calendar days. Because if it’s ten business days he filed on the ninth day but if it’s on ten calendar days then it’s filed on the thirteenth day.
It notes that petitioner testified that he believed his motion to withdraw the guilty plea was due within ten business days. It was filed nine business days but thirteen days after the pronouncement of the judgment and sentence. So this is a pro se person who talked to get an attorney to do that at the last minute. So during that time period he was acting on his own and didn’t realize he thought it was business days.
Seeking Legal Advice
Don’t make that mistake note that it is going to be calendar days if it’s before the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals and it’s a criminal deadline. If it is pretty much anything else it’s going to fall within that if it’s under 11 days then it’s business days. But don’t take my word for that you’re gonna want to talk to an attorney about your specific circumstances to see what the deadline is for you to talk to an attorney with Wirth Law Office you go online to MakeLawEasy.com or call at 918-879-1681 today.
