John Marshall Harlan II

“ I agree with the court below that the absence of an explicit inquiry may sometimes entitle the defendant to a subsequent hearing, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2255, to determine whether the plea was in fact made voluntarily and understandingly. In view of the wholly inexplicit directives of the old rule, however, I believe that such a hearing suffices, and that a plea made under that rule should not automatically be set aside as in the case of a plea made under the 1966 rule-the situation in McCarthy. ”

“ While the amended Rule 11 requires the trial judge to follow specific procedures before accepting a plea of guilty, and was promulgated for that very purpose, see Notes of Advisory Committee on Rules, the pre-1966 Rule 11 was 'substantially a restatement of existing law and practice,' ibid., and required only that the judge 'determine' that the plea is made 'voluntarily with understanding of the nature of the charge,' without, however, specifying a procedure for making this determination. ”

“ Justice BLACK, with whom Mr. Justice DOUGLAS joins, dissenting.
Notes
This work is in the public domain in the United States because it is a work of the United States federal government (see 17 U.S.C. 105) . ”