Filed: Aug. 11, 2015
Latest Update: Aug. 11, 2015
Summary: ORDER ACCEPTING REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION CONCERNING GUILTY PLEA DONALD E. O'BRIEN , Senior District Judge . I. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND Before the Court is Magistrate Judge Leonard T. Strand's Report and Recommendation Concerning Guilty Plea (Docket No. 126). On August 27, 2014, a four count Superseding Indictment (Docket No. 23) was filed in the above-referenced case. Only count 1 related to Defendant Jellema. On July 16, 2015, Defendant Mackenzie Elizabeth Jellema entered a guilty
Summary: ORDER ACCEPTING REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION CONCERNING GUILTY PLEA DONALD E. O'BRIEN , Senior District Judge . I. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND Before the Court is Magistrate Judge Leonard T. Strand's Report and Recommendation Concerning Guilty Plea (Docket No. 126). On August 27, 2014, a four count Superseding Indictment (Docket No. 23) was filed in the above-referenced case. Only count 1 related to Defendant Jellema. On July 16, 2015, Defendant Mackenzie Elizabeth Jellema entered a guilty p..
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ORDER ACCEPTING REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION CONCERNING GUILTY PLEA
DONALD E. O'BRIEN, Senior District Judge.
I. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND
Before the Court is Magistrate Judge Leonard T. Strand's Report and Recommendation Concerning Guilty Plea (Docket No. 126).
On August 27, 2014, a four count Superseding Indictment (Docket No. 23) was filed in the above-referenced case. Only count 1 related to Defendant Jellema.
On July 16, 2015, Defendant Mackenzie Elizabeth Jellema entered a guilty plea to Count 1 of the Superseding Indictment before United States Magistrate Judge Leonard T. Strand.1
Count 1 of the Superseding Indictment charges:
Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance. Beginning on or about July 2013, and continuing through May 2014, in the Northern District of Iowa and elsewhere, defendants (co-defendants' names omitted) and Mackenzie Elizabeth Jellema, did knowingly and intentionally combine, conspire, confederate, and agree with persons known and unknown to the Grand Jury, to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine which contained 50 grams or more of actual (pure) methamphetamine, a Schedule II controlled substance.
This was in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1), 841(b)(1)(A) and 846.
As mentioned, the Report and Recommendation (Docket No. 126), states that there is a plea agreement (Docket No. 120-1), and recommends that defendant Mackenzie Elizabeth Jellema's guilty plea be accepted. Waivers of objections to Judge Strand's Report and Recommendation were filed by each party (Docket Nos. 127 and 128). The Court, therefore, undertakes the necessary review to accept defendant Mackenzie Elizabeth Jellema's plea in this case.
II. ANALYSIS
A. Standard of Review
Pursuant to statue, this Court's standard of review for a magistrate judge's Report and Recommendation is as follows:
A judge of the court shall make a de novo determination of those portions of the report or specified proposed findings or recommendations to which objection is made. A judge of the court may accept, reject, or modify, in whole or in part, the findings or recommendations made by the magistrate [judge].
28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1). Similarly, Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 72(b) provides for review of a magistrate judge's Report and Recommendation on dispositive motions and prisoner petitions, where objections are made as follows:
The district judge to whom the case is assigned shall make a de novo determination upon the record, or after additional evidence, of any portion of the magistrate judge's disposition to which specific written objection has been made in accordance with this rule. The district judge may accept, reject, or modify the recommendation decision, receive further evidence, or recommit the matter to the magistrate judge with instructions.
FED. R. CIV. P. 72(b).
As also mentioned, waivers of objections to the Report and Recommendation have been filed, and it appears to the Court upon review of Magistrate Judge Strand's findings and conclusions that there are no grounds to reject or modify them.
IT IS THEREFORE HEREBY ORDERED that this Court accepts Magistrate Judge Strand's Report and Recommendation (Docket No. 126), and accepts defendant Mackenzie Elizabeth Jellema's plea of guilty in this case to Count 1 of the Superseding Indictment (Docket No. 23).
IT IS SO ORDERED.
