Latta — Absconding breached plea agreement and barred withdrawal
The Supreme Court reversed. Applying contract principles to the plea bargain, it held that appearing for sentencing is an implicit condition of every plea agreement involving imprisonment. Latta breached that condition by fleeing and failing to appear, even if he had otherwise cooperated. Once he breached, the agreement no longer governed his sentence, so the different lawful sentence did not trigger G.S. 15A-1024’s plea-withdrawal right. The Cou