05-3211 — United States of America v. Luke A. Moran, Appellant

U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals
(April 12, 2006)


BRIEFS

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CASE SUMMARY (prepared at Washburn Law)

Nature of the Case
Luke Moran plead guilty to the felony offense of using a controlled substance while in possession of ammunition. Mr. Moran was sentenced to fifteen months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. Mr. Moran contends that the District Court erred in withdrawing its original acceptance of his plea to the lesser charge of possession of marijuana, a misdemeanor. Mr. Moran asks this Court to reverse the District Court's decision, reinstate the guilty plea to possession of marijuana, and enforce the plea agreement.

Issue Statement
Mr. Moran argues that the District Court violated Fed. R. Crim. P. 11 by interjecting itself into the plea negotiations. Mr. Moran also claims that the evidence fails to support the District Court's finding discrediting Mr. Moran's factual statement that he possessed marijuana on the date in question.

Defendant/Appellant's Position
Mr. Moran argues that the District Court’s displeasure with the plea agreement is not sufficient justification for withdrawing its acceptance of the plea. According to Mr. Moran, the District Court was prohibited by Fed. R. Crim. P. 11 from reopening the plea negotiations and rejecting the plea once the plea had been accepted. Mr. Moran claims that that the District Court rejected his statement under oath that he possessed marijuana when pleading to a misdemeanor, but accepted his statement when pleading to a felony. He maintains that the District Court relied on a statement made to his alcohol counselor to determine that he was lying. However, Mr. Moran asserts that the out-of-court statement was not made under oath and that he made while defending his public image and was obsessed with clearing his name. Mr. Moran asks this Court to reverse the District Court's decision to withdraw its acceptance of his original guilty plea.

Government/Appellee's Position
The Government argues that the District Court properly withdrew its acceptance of Mr. Moran's guilty plea to possession of marijuana after finding in an evidentiary hearing that Mr. Moran lied to the court. The District Court did not reopen or interject itself in the plea negotiations. It merely expressed displeasure with the terms of the plea agreement and asked for an explanation of those terms. Thereafter, the District Court held an evidentiary hearing in which testimony was introduced that Mr. Moran denied his guilt to his alcohol counselor, claimed that he had been forced to enter the guilty plea by his attorney and the Assistant U.S. Attorney, and claimed that he was not in possession of marijuana on the date in question. During the hearing, Mr. Moran admitted that he was a user of marijuana and that he possessed ammunition. The Government asks the Court to affirm the District Court's decision to set aside the original guilty plea.

INFORMAL CASE SUMMARY

Please Note: This informal case summary is not intended for official use and does not purport to be exhaustive of the issues or defenses presented by the parties.

Defendant Moran was convicted of being an unlawful user of marijuana in possession of ammunition. He was sentenced to 15 months incarceration followed by 3 years of supervised release. On appeal, the defendant contends the district court erred in withdrawing its acceptance of his original plea to a reduced charge of possession of marijuana, a misdemeanor, arguing that the district court violated Fed. R. Crim. P. 11 by interjecting itself into the plea negotiations. After holding an evidentiary hearing where the defendant's statements to his alcohol counselor and to a detective that he did not possess marijuana were disclosed, the district court found that the defendant failed to tell the truth to the court during the change of plea hearing and that there was no factual basis for the plea. The defendant seeks to have this court vacate the district court's decision regarding his original plea to possession of marijuana.