State Missouri v. Billy George Wagoner

On June 13, 1963, Billy George Wagoner, alias Billy George Wagner, waived his right to counsel and entered a plea of guilty to a charge of burglary and stealing for which he was sentenced to five years' imprisonment for each crime, the sentences to run consecutively. He has since moved under Criminal Rule 27.26, V.A.M.R., to vacate that judgment and sentence and has appealed from the order denying his motion without a hearing. In his motion appellant contended that his right to counsel under Sections 10 and 18(a), Article I, Constitution of Missouri, Amendment XIV, Constitution of the United States, Sections 545.820 and 544.170, V.A.M.S., Criminal Rule 29.05, V.A.M.R., Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335, 342, Lane v. Brown, 372 U.S. 355, and Escobedo v. Illinois, 378 U.S. 478, was denied him by the trial court because it was not waived intelligently in that he ""is, and has been all of his life, a paranoic incompetent, where his mental delusions render him incapable of comprehending the meaning or the signification of intelligently waving his rights to Counsel,"" and ""thereby he is illegaly and unconstitutionally imprisoned.""