Background
Bradley A. Goodbred pleaded guilty to financial exploitation of an elderly person, a Class 1 felony. The State agreed that his prison sentence would not exceed 11 years, making the plea negotiated under Illinois Supreme Court Rule 604(d). The Kendall County circuit court sentenced him to six years in prison.
After sentencing, the court told Goodbred that he had to move to withdraw his plea within 30 days if he wanted to challenge the plea, but also stated that he could file a notice of appeal if he chose not to file such a motion. Goodbred filed a pro se motion to reduce his sentence, followed by counsel’s motion to reconsider sentence. The circuit court denied that motion, and Goodbred appealed without moving to withdraw his plea.
The Court’s Holding
The appellate court remanded for further proceedings because the circuit court did not substantially comply with Illinois Supreme Court Rule 605(c)’s required admonishments for a negotiated guilty plea. Under Rule 604(d), a defendant who entered a negotiated plea must first file a timely motion to withdraw the plea and vacate the judgment before appealing, including when seeking review of the sentence.
The trial court’s warnings incorrectly suggested that withdrawing the plea was necessary only to challenge the plea itself and expressly suggested that Goodbred could appeal without filing a withdrawal motion. Those statements could not have informed him that withdrawal was a prerequisite to appellate review of his sentence. The court therefore declined to dismiss the appeal and remanded for proper Rule 605(c) admonishments and further postplea proceedings.
Key Takeaways
- A negotiated guilty-plea defendant must generally move to withdraw the plea before appealing a sentence.
- Rule 605(c) admonishments must clearly convey that the withdrawal motion is required before any appeal.
- When defective admonishments may have misled a defendant, remand—not dismissal—is the proper remedy.
Why It Matters
The decision reinforces that plea-appeal admonishments cannot imply that a defendant may directly appeal a negotiated sentence. Trial courts must accurately explain the postplea procedure, and defense counsel should confirm whether a plea was negotiated before selecting the appropriate Rule 604(d) motion.
The order is nonprecedential under Illinois Supreme Court Rule 23(b), except as Rule 23(e)(1) permits.