Appellate court hears argument on Huerta’s bid to withdraw guilty plea and contest sentencing enhancements

Appellate counsel for Mr. Huerta told the Court of Criminal Appeals in March 2026 that Huerta had filed a pro se motion to withdraw his guilty plea and later retained counsel to amend that motion and consolidate it with an appeal of his sentence.

Counsel said Huerta understood from trial counsel that his exposure would be "somewhere between 25 to 30 years," even though the written plea agreement and the plea colloquy on the record repeatedly stated his sentencing range as 25 to 40 years and the defendant twice affirmed understanding that range. Appellate counsel said he was not asking the appellate court to resolve ineffective‑assistance claims now, but instead to address a manifest‑injustice claim that the plea was not knowing or voluntary. "I believed some of what he's saying would go towards an ineffective assistance of counsel," counsel said, describing why the defendant later sought to withdraw his plea.

Courtney Orr, counsel for the state,…