People v. Tlatenchi

              Sixth Division
February 27, 2009
No. 1-06-1608
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
MARIA TLATENCHI,
Defendant-Appellant.
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Appeal from
the Circuit Court
of Cook County
04 CR 293
Honorable
Garritt Howard,
Judge Presiding
JUSTICE McBRIDE delivered the opinion of the court:
Defendant, Maria Tlatenchi, appeals from an order of the circuit court granting the State’s
motion to dismiss her pro se motion to withdraw her guilty plea. On appeal, defendant contends
that: (1) the trial court erred in dismissing her motion to withdraw her guilty plea as untimely; (2)
defense counsel failed to comply with the requirements of Supreme Court Rule 604(d) (210 Ill.
2d R. 604(d)); and (3) the trial court failed to properly admonish her as required by Supreme
Court Rule 605(c) (210 Ill. 2d R. 605(c)).
On February 21, 2006, defendant indicated her desire to plead guilty to the charge of first
degree murder (720 ILCS 5/9-1(a)(3) (West 2002)) in exchange for a sentence of 45 years’
imprisonment. Before accepting that plea, the trial court admonished defendant of the possible
range of penalties that could attach to that offense and ascertained defendant’s understanding of
her trial rights and waiver of those rights. Defendant confirmed that the plea was the product of
her own free will and that no threats or promises were made to her to induce her to plead guilty.
The trial court also admonished defendant that if she was not a United States citizen, a conviction
for first degree murder could have the consequence of deportation, exclusion of admission to the