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Plea of Guilty of Murder for Insurance Cannot Be Withdrawn

Barry Zalma
Nov 9, 2023

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In State Of Ohio v. Darin Brusiter, No. 112410, 2023-Ohio-3794, Court of Appeals of Ohio, Eighth District, Cuyahoga (October 19, 2023) Darin Brusiter (“Brusiter”) appealed for the third time from the trial court’s denial of his post-sentence motion to withdraw his guilty plea.

FACTS

In April 2011, Brusiter was charged with two counts of aggravated murder, with murder-for-hire and firearm specifications, kidnapping, insurance fraud, and tampering with evidence in relation to the killing of Asia Harris (“Harris”). Harris’s husband Samuel Wilson was also charged in the same indictment.

Brusiter filed a motion to suppress the statements he made to the police as being in violation of Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966). On May 2, 2012, the court denied Brusiter’s motion and that same day he pled guilty to one count each of aggravated murder, kidnapping, insurance fraud, and tampering with evidence. The court sentenced Brusiter to an agreed term of “33 years to life” in prison.

Brusiter filed a direct appeal of the trial court’s denial of his motion to suppress and the Court of Appeals earlier affirmed Brusiter’s convictions, finding that he waived his right to appeal pretrial rulings when he pled guilty. In finding that Brusiter waived his right to challenge the denial of his motion to suppress, the Court of Appeals also concluded that “the record on appeal affirmatively demonstrates that [Brusiter] entered a voluntary, knowing and intelligent guilty plea as required by Crim.R. 11.”

Brusiter filed a second motion to withdraw guilty plea. In this motion, Brusiter argued that there are two, apparently specious, reasons he should be allowed to withdraw his guilty plea. The trial court summarily denied both motions to withdraw guilty plea.

ANALYSIS

Appellate courts review a trial court’s ruling on a motion to withdraw a guilty plea for an abuse of discretion.

The presumption of prejudice recognized in precedent applies regardless of whether a defendant has signed an appeal waiver. Brusiter’s 2020 motion to withdraw his guilty plea, which alleged ineffective assistance of counsel and the improper denial of his motion to suppress, is barred by the doctrine of res judicata.

Brusiter filed a direct appeal in which he challenged the trial court’s denial of his motion to suppress. The Court of Appeals three times affirmed Brusiter’s convictions, finding that he waived his right to challenge the denial of his motion to suppress by pleading guilty. The Court of Appeals also found that Brusiter’s guilty plea was voluntary, knowing, and intelligent.

Therefore, the trial court did not abuse its discretion by denying Brusiter’s motion to withdraw his guilty plea without holding a hearing. The motion was filed almost nine years after he pled guilty to aggravated murder and other offenses associated with the death of Harris.

ZALMA OPINION

Although life insurance fraud by murder is a serious and violent crime Mr. Brusiter decided it was important to plead guilty with a guaranteed sentence of only 33 years rather than a death sentence. Regardless, he abused the kindness of the courts of Ohio by filing multiple motions and appeals to withdraw his plea. Since he’s in jail for at least 20 more years it made no sense to punish him further or seek monetary sanctions he could not pay, but any further appeals or motions should be summarily dismissed without an opinion.

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