Filed: Nov. 19, 2009
Latest Update: Feb. 12, 2020
Summary: UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 08-5048 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. MUSHULLA SALEEM NIXON, a/k/a M’Shulla, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, at New Bern. Louise W. Flanagan, Chief District Judge. (4:07-cr-00053-FL-1) Submitted: November 17, 2009 Decided: November 19, 2009 Before WILKINSON, MICHAEL, and KING, Circuit Judges. Affirmed in part; dismissed in part
Summary: UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 08-5048 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. MUSHULLA SALEEM NIXON, a/k/a M’Shulla, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, at New Bern. Louise W. Flanagan, Chief District Judge. (4:07-cr-00053-FL-1) Submitted: November 17, 2009 Decided: November 19, 2009 Before WILKINSON, MICHAEL, and KING, Circuit Judges. Affirmed in part; dismissed in part ..
More
UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 08-5048
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
v.
MUSHULLA SALEEM NIXON, a/k/a M’Shulla,
Defendant - Appellant.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern
District of North Carolina, at New Bern. Louise W. Flanagan,
Chief District Judge. (4:07-cr-00053-FL-1)
Submitted: November 17, 2009 Decided: November 19, 2009
Before WILKINSON, MICHAEL, and KING, Circuit Judges.
Affirmed in part; dismissed in part by unpublished per curiam
opinion.
Douglas E. Kingsbery, THARRINGTON SMITH, L.L.P., Raleigh, North
Carolina, for Appellant. Anne Margaret Hayes, Assistant United
States Attorney, Raleigh, North Carolina; Joshua B. Royster,
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, Raleigh, North Carolina,
for Appellee.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
PER CURIAM:
Mushulla Saleem Nixon seeks to appeal his conviction
after pleading guilty pursuant to a written plea agreement, for
conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute
more than fifty grams of crack cocaine, and the resulting
277-month sentence. On appeal, counsel filed a brief in
accordance with Anders v. California,
386 U.S. 738 (1967),
stating that in his opinion, there are no meritorious issues for
review, but questioning whether appeal waivers are invalid as a
matter of law, that Nixon’s plea was not knowing and voluntary,
and that the district court committed procedural error in
calculating the Sentencing Guidelines range. Specifically,
Nixon contends that the district court erred in overruling his
objections to enhancements for his role in the offense,
possession of a firearm, the use of a minor in commission of the
offense, the use of drug quantities obtained from his protected
statement, and the use of certain prior convictions, which were
allegedly part of the relevant conduct, to compute his criminal
history score. Nixon was notified of his right to file a pro se
supplemental brief but has not done so.
The Government has moved to dismiss the appeal,
asserting that it is barred by Nixon’s appellate waiver in the
validly entered plea agreement. Nixon’s counsel has responded
2
that the motion to dismiss should be denied based on the reasons
asserted in the Anders brief.
A defendant may waive the right to appeal if that
waiver is knowing and intelligent. United States v. Poindexter,
492 F.3d 263, 270 (4th Cir. 2007). Generally, if the district
court fully questions a defendant regarding the waiver of his
right to appeal during the plea colloquy performed in accordance
with Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 11, the waiver is both
valid and enforceable. United States v. Johnson,
410 F.3d 137,
151 (4th Cir. 2005); United States v. Wessells,
936 F.2d 165,
167-68 (4th Cir. 1991). The question of whether a defendant
validly waived his right to appeal is a question of law that we
review de novo. United States v. Blick,
408 F.3d 162, 168 (4th
Cir. 2005).
Our review of the record leads us to conclude that
Nixon knowingly and voluntarily waived the right to appeal any
sentence that was not above the advisory Sentencing Guidelines
range and any issues relating to the establishment of the
Guidelines range. The sentencing issues Nixon raises on appeal
fall within the scope of this waiver. We therefore grant the
Government's motion to dismiss in part and dismiss this portion
of the appeal.
Although the waiver provision in the plea agreement
precludes our review of the sentence, the waiver does not
3
preclude our review of any errors in Nixon’s conviction that may
be revealed pursuant to the review required by Anders. In
accordance with Anders, we have reviewed the entire record and
have found no meritorious issues for appeal. We therefore deny
the Government’s motion to dismiss in part and affirm Nixon’s
conviction.
This court requires that counsel inform Nixon, in
writing, of the right to petition the Supreme Court of the
United States for further review. If Nixon requests that a
petition be filed, but counsel believes that such a petition
would be frivolous, then counsel may move in this court for
leave to withdraw from representation. Counsel’s motion must
state that a copy thereof was served on Nixon.
We dispense with oral argument because the facts and
legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials
before the court and argument would not aid the decisional
process.
AFFIRMED IN PART;
DISMISSED IN PART
4