REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION

RAY KENT, Magistrate Judge.

Pursuant to W.D. Mich. LCrR 11.1 and upon a request of the district court, I conducted a felony plea hearing in this matter on July 19, 2019, after receiving the written consent of the defendant, the defendant's attorney, and the attorney for the government. These consents were also placed on the record in open court.

Defendant Michael Allen Merchant is charged in Counts 2 and 4 of a multi-count Indictment with possession of 50 grams or more of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute it, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, respectively. On the basis of the record made at the hearing, I found that defendant was competent to enter pleas of guilty and that the pleas were knowledgeable and voluntary with a full understanding of each of the rights waived by the defendant, that the defendant fully understood the nature of the charges and the consequences of the pleas, and that the defendant's pleas had a sufficient basis in fact which contained all of the elements of the offenses charged.

I also inquired into the plea agreement. I found the plea agreement to have been knowingly and voluntarily made and found that it fully reflected all of the promises made by the parties.

Accordingly, I accepted the pleas of guilty, subject to final acceptance of the pleas by the District Judge, and I specifically reserved acceptance of the plea agreement for the District Judge. I ordered the preparation of a presentence investigation report.

Recommendation

Based upon the foregoing, I respectfully recommend that the defendant's pleas of guilty to Counts 2 and 4 of the Indictment be accepted, that the court adjudicate the defendant guilty of those charges, and that the written plea agreement be accepted at, or before, the time of sentencing.