Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ca8-05-03715/USCOURTS-ca8-05-03715-0/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
Scott Christopher Cook
Appellant
United States of America
Appellee

Document Text:

1

The Honorable Donald E. O’Brien, United States District Judge for the

Northern District of Iowa.

United States Court of Appeals

FOR THE EIGHTH CIRCUIT

___________

No. 05-3715 

___________

United States of America, *

* Appeal from the United States

Plaintiff - Appellee, * District Court for the

* Northern District of Iowa.

v. *

*

Scott Christopher Cook, * 

* 

Defendant - Appellant. *

___________

 Submitted: April 19, 2006 

 Filed: May 22, 2006

___________

Before LOKEN, Chief Judge, BOWMAN and BYE, Circuit Judges.

___________

BYE, Circuit Judge.

Scott Christopher Cook pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of

conspiring to distribute methamphetamine. The district court1

 sentenced him to a

mandatory minimum twenty year sentence due to a prior state felony conviction. We

affirm.

Appellate Case: 05-3715 Page: 1 Date Filed: 05/22/2006 Entry ID: 2047269
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I

Cook was involved in a methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy spanning

1997 to 2004. In June 2003, he pleaded guilty in Iowa state court to a felony charge

of possession of a methamphetamine mixture with intent to deliver. In the instant

federal case, Cook was charged with one count of conspiring to sell drugs in violation

of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a), 841(b), 848, 859(a), and 860(a). Pursuant to a plea

agreement, he pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge with a stipulated drug quantity

of 150 grams or more of actual methamphetamine. Because of the state conviction,

Cook was sentenced to a twenty-year mandatory minimum under 21 U.S.C.

§ 841(b)(1)(A). On appeal, Cook argues it was plain error to use the 2003 Iowa

offense to enhance his sentence under § 841.

II

Cook failed to raise an objection to the § 841(b)(1)(A) enhancement in the court

below. He suggests we review for plain error. The government, however, contends

Cook waived any challenges the district court’s application of the prior conviction by

pleading guilty.

Cook’s plea agreement notes he was convicted of a prior state crime and it

would be used to sentence him to a mandatory minimum of twenty years.

Nonetheless, Cook asserts he merely overlooked any issues regarding the application

of the state conviction and did not waive them. See United States v. Barnett, 410 F.3d

1048, 1050 (8th Cir. 2005) (noting waiver requires intentional relinquishment or

abandonment). 

Appellate Case: 05-3715 Page: 2 Date Filed: 05/22/2006 Entry ID: 2047269
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Cook’s argument, however, is unavailing. As we held in United States v.

Nguyen, 46 F.3d 781, 783 (8th Cir. 1995), a defendant who explicitly and voluntarily

exposes himself to a specific sentence may not challenge that punishment on appeal.

See also United States v. Durham, 963 F.2d 185, 187 (8th Cir. 1992) (“[Defendant]

waived any objection to the twenty-five-year sentence by agreeing that it was the

minimum sentence mandated by the statutes, and by accepting the benefit of the plea

agreement.”).

Here, the government filed its notice to seek an enhanced penalty based on the

prior state felony conviction. Cook did not object. He stipulated to the facts

underlying the conviction and to the conviction itself. He signed a plea agreement

stating the mandatory minimum sentence was twenty years because of the prior

conviction. At the time of the plea, Cook did not object to the prior crime but stated

he understood the plea agreement and was entering his plea freely and voluntarily with

the knowledge his mandatory minimum sentence would be twenty years. Cook

accepted the benefit of the plea agreement, explicitly and voluntarily exposing himself

to a specific sentence. Thus, Cook waived the right to contest his sentence on the

basis of the § 841(b)(1)(A) enhancement.

Therefore, we affirm. 

______________________________

Appellate Case: 05-3715 Page: 3 Date Filed: 05/22/2006 Entry ID: 2047269