Opinion ID: 2674690
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Post-Plea Proceedings & Sentencing

Text: Several days after pleading guilty, Kerr filed a pro se motion to withdraw his plea— the first in a succession of pro se motions he filed in the post-plea, pre-sentencing phase of the case. Kerr asserted in the motion that he wanted to “take back” his plea to permit the “the jury [to] find [him] guilty or not guilty.” The district court denied his request on April 26, concluding that Kerr’s plea allocution satisfied the requirements of Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 11(b), he had not shown a “fair and just” reason for withdrawing the plea, and he had not accounted for the prejudice that would inure to the government and the court if his request were granted. 8 11‐5462‐cr(L) United States v. Kerr On May 14, Kerr requested the appointment of counsel to assist him with, inter alia, a motion to withdraw his guilty plea.3 The following day, he again moved to withdraw his plea, asserting, without providing specifics, that the AUSA and government witnesses had perjured themselves, he had received ineffective assistance of counsel, there were “valid grounds for withdrawing [his] guilty plea,” and he had a “claim of innocence.” Kerr reiterated his request for new counsel in a June 22 letter and in a July 7 pro se motion to dismiss the charges due to the government’s alleged perjury and destruction of evidence. In his June 22 letter, Kerr claimed, for the first time, that “standby counsel” provided ineffective assistance by “instructing [him] to plea[d] guilty.” The court denied all pending motions by order entered on July 22, ruling that both Kerr’s request for new counsel and his renewed motion to withdraw his plea were “unsupported by a showing of cause,” and noting that in April it had denied Kerr’s first motion to withdraw his guilty plea.4 While these events unfolded, the Probation Department submitted a presentence report in which it held Kerr accountable for the entire quantity of MDMA pills found in the vehicle. Based on a total offense level of 32 and Kerr’s criminal history category of I, the Probation Department calculated Kerr’s advisory sentencing range under the United States Sentencing Guidelines as 121 to 151 months’ imprisonment. It also noted that Kerr had 3 Wells informed Kerr before the submission of this letter that, given his affirmations during the change of plea hearing regarding the knowing and voluntary nature of Kerr’s plea, he was “prohibited” from assisting Kerr with the motion to withdraw the plea. Wells also urged Kerr to “return to representing [himself] pro se” so that Wells could advise him as he proceeded. 4 The court also denied Kerr’s several pro se motions to set aside the “jury verdict” and to vacate his conviction on various grounds. 9 11‐5462‐cr(L) United States v. Kerr refused to meet with the Probation officer tasked with preparing the report. In a pro se letter sent shortly before sentencing, Kerr explained that although he had wanted to meet with the Probation officer, he did not wish to do so with Wells present because Wells had “lied” to him during trial. For his part, Wells explained in a sentencing memorandum submitted on Kerr’s behalf that Kerr had refused to meet with him to prepare for sentencing; he also expressed his concern with Kerr’s “mental stability.” Wells took issue with the FMC psychologists’ competency determination, representing that although he had no “training in mental health diagnosis,” Kerr’s actions over the course of the prosecution were “not that of a rational and undisturbed mind” and he had been unable to help Wells prepare for sentencing. Wells further advised the court that he could not ethically help Kerr with the motion to withdraw the plea because his affirmation at the change of plea hearing that Kerr pled guilty voluntarily created a “classic and irremediable conflict” with respect to that motion. He therefore urged the court to appoint new counsel for purposes of that motion. Finally, Wells argued that Kerr should be held accountable only for the four thousand MDMA pills found between the front seats of his vehicle because there was no evidence he knew about the pills hidden within the rear interior paneling. The court imposed sentence on August 4, 2010. Although Wells appeared at the hearing, he informed the court that Kerr had instructed him not to speak. In his statement to the court, Kerr again expounded at length upon his theories that the government improperly destroyed a number of the MDMA pills, the AUSA committed perjury, and the court improperly deprived him of the opportunity to call his chosen witnesses at trial. The 10 11‐5462‐cr(L) United States v. Kerr court interjected, stating that Kerr was “hung up on . . . insignificant . . . details” irrelevant to sentencing. It went on: “I cannot figure you out, sir, which is why I had a mental exam done. They tell me you’re competent and capable but you are the most belligerent individual I have ever met in my life . . . , [and] I can’t figure out why.” The court further asserted that Kerr’s refusal to accept the advice of an attorney had “made [his] situation so much worse.” After obtaining Kerr’s permission to speak, Wells again expressed his concerns about Kerr’s mental state and reiterated his disagreement with the FMC psychologists’ competency determination. He also argued that the court should recognize Kerr’s minor role as a “courier” or “drug mule.” After hearing from the government, the court adopted the facts contained in the presentence report and found, consistent with the calculations of the Probation Department, that Kerr’s Guidelines range of imprisonment was 121 to 151 months. The court sentenced Kerr to 121 months’ imprisonment, explaining that it found the sentence “fair, just, and sufficient but not greater than necessary to comply with the goals of sentencing set forth in 18 U.S.C. 3553(a).” The court emphasized that, had Kerr been “more cooperative” with counsel and the Probation Department, it may have been presented with a “fuller record” justifying the imposition of a lesser sentence, especially given his lack of criminal history. Once again, the court remarked that it could not understand Kerr’s intransigent behavior. Kerr timely appealed the court’s August 6, 2010 judgment. Approximately one week later, he submitted a letter reiterating that Wells was “standby counsel” only and did not speak on his behalf. 11 11‐5462‐cr(L) United States v. Kerr