Filed: Jul. 27, 2010
Latest Update: Feb. 21, 2020
Summary: UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 07-4795 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. JAMES HOWARD SHIFFLETT, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia, at Martinsburg. John Preston Bailey, Chief District Judge. (3:99-cr-00042-JPB) Submitted: July 12, 2010 Decided: July 27, 2010 Before NIEMEYER and SHEDD, Circuit Judges, and HAMILTON, Senior Circuit Judge. Affirmed in part; dismissed i
Summary: UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 07-4795 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. JAMES HOWARD SHIFFLETT, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia, at Martinsburg. John Preston Bailey, Chief District Judge. (3:99-cr-00042-JPB) Submitted: July 12, 2010 Decided: July 27, 2010 Before NIEMEYER and SHEDD, Circuit Judges, and HAMILTON, Senior Circuit Judge. Affirmed in part; dismissed in..
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UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 07-4795
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
v.
JAMES HOWARD SHIFFLETT,
Defendant - Appellant.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern
District of West Virginia, at Martinsburg. John Preston Bailey,
Chief District Judge. (3:99-cr-00042-JPB)
Submitted: July 12, 2010 Decided: July 27, 2010
Before NIEMEYER and SHEDD, Circuit Judges, and HAMILTON, Senior
Circuit Judge.
Affirmed in part; dismissed in part by unpublished per curiam
opinion.
Scott Charlton Brown, SCOTT C. BROWN LAW OFFICE, Wheeling, West
Virginia, for Appellant. Thomas Oliver Mucklow, Assistant
United States Attorney, Martinsburg, West Virginia, for
Appellee.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
PER CURIAM:
James Howard Shifflett pled guilty to distributing
oxycodone in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) (2006). The
district court sentenced him to 151 months. On appeal, counsel
has filed a brief pursuant to Anders v. California,
386 U.S. 738
(1967), stating that there are no meritorious issues for appeal
but questioning whether the district court erred by accepting
Shifflett’s guilty plea when the stipulated relevant conduct
included pills that were double counted. Shifflett was informed
of his right to file a pro se supplemental brief but has not
done so. The Government has moved to dismiss the appeal based
upon Shifflett’s waiver of appellate rights. We affirm in part
and dismiss in part.
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 Fed. R. Crim. P. 11 colloquy, 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).
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Our review of the record leads us to conclude that
Shifflett knowingly and voluntarily waived the right to appeal
his sentence. Moreover, the issue raised on appeal is a
sentencing issue, which falls within the scope of the waiver.
We therefore grant, in part, the Government’s motion to dismiss
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
preclude our review of any errors in Shifflett’s conviction that
may be revealed by our review pursuant to Anders. Our review of
the transcript of the plea colloquy convinces us that the
district court fully complied with the mandates of Rule 11 in
accepting Shifflett’s guilty plea. The district court ensured
that the plea was entered knowingly and voluntarily and was
supported by an independent factual basis. See United States v.
DeFusco,
949 F.2d 114, 116, 119-20 (4th Cir. 1991). Thus, we
deny, in part, the Government’s motion to dismiss and affirm the
conviction.
In accordance with Anders, we have reviewed the entire
record in this case and have found no meritorious issues not
covered by the waiver. We therefore affirm Shifflett’s
conviction and dismiss the appeal of his sentence. This court
requires that counsel inform his client, in writing, of the
right to petition the Supreme Court of the United States for
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further review. If the client 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 the client. 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
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