Filed: Nov. 25, 2019
Latest Update: Mar. 03, 2020
Summary: UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 19-4150 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. BRENDAN CORNELIUS PENN, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, at Charlotte. Robert J. Conrad, Jr., District Judge. (3:18-cr-00087-RJC-DCK-1) Submitted: October 23, 2019 Decided: November 25, 2019 Before DIAZ, THACKER, and RICHARDSON, Circuit Judges. Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion. Les
Summary: UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 19-4150 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. BRENDAN CORNELIUS PENN, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, at Charlotte. Robert J. Conrad, Jr., District Judge. (3:18-cr-00087-RJC-DCK-1) Submitted: October 23, 2019 Decided: November 25, 2019 Before DIAZ, THACKER, and RICHARDSON, Circuit Judges. Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion. Lesl..
More
UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 19-4150
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
v.
BRENDAN CORNELIUS PENN,
Defendant - Appellant.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, at
Charlotte. Robert J. Conrad, Jr., District Judge. (3:18-cr-00087-RJC-DCK-1)
Submitted: October 23, 2019 Decided: November 25, 2019
Before DIAZ, THACKER, and RICHARDSON, Circuit Judges.
Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
Leslie Carter Rawls, Charlotte, North Carolina, for Appellant. R. Andrew Murray, United
States Attorney, Charlotte, North Carolina, Amy E. Ray, Assistant United States Attorney,
OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY, Asheville, North Carolina, for
Appellee.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
PER CURIAM:
Brendan Cornelius Penn appeals from his 24-month sentence imposed pursuant to
his guilty plea to escape. On appeal, Penn contends that he received ineffective assistance
of counsel when his attorney failed to object to the court’s incorrect factual statements at
sentencing. We affirm.
To prove a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel, a defendant must show
(1) “that counsel’s performance was deficient,” and (2) “that the deficient performance
prejudiced the defense.” Strickland v. Washington,
466 U.S. 668, 687 (1984). “Unless an
attorney’s ineffectiveness conclusively appears on the face of the record, [ineffective
assistance] claims are not addressed on direct appeal.” United States v. Faulls,
821 F.3d
502, 507-08 (4th Cir. 2016). Instead, such claims should be raised in a motion brought
pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2255 (2012), in order to permit sufficient development of the
record. United States v. Baptiste,
596 F.3d 214, 216 n.1 (4th Cir. 2010).
Here, we find that the record fails to conclusively establish either prong of
Strickland. Accordingly, we affirm Penn’s sentence. 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
2