Court Opinion

ID: 9576033
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 21:19:55.536279+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T12:55:24.504025
License: Public Domain

BOGGS, Chief Judge,
concurring in part and dissenting in part.
With respect to the merits of this appeal, I agree with the thorough analysis of the lead opinion that the sentence should be affirmed. However, I believe that we should not reach the merits of the appeal because Mr. Jones legally waived his right to appeal in the plea agreement and such agreements are enforceable. See, e.g., United States v. Gibney, 519 F.3d 301, 306 (6th Cir.2008); United States v. Calderon, 388 F.3d 197, 199 (6th Cir.2004) (“It is well settled that a defendant in a criminal case may waive any right, even a constitutional right, by means of a plea agreement.”).
The plea agreement clearly states that Jones “waive[d] the right to appeal” if his sentence “is at or below the maximum of the guideline range as determined by the Court,” but could appeal “a sentence above the guideline range.” Jones was sentenced to what, all agree now, was the proper sentence under the guidelines. However, there might be two reasons that arguably would allow Jones to escape his clear and bargained-for waiver. The first of these is that, for technical reasons discussed below, his sentence, which fully complied with the guidelines, was indeed “above the guideline range” rather than “at or below the maximum of the guideline range.” The second reason would be that, *575regardless of the language of the signed waiver, Jones did not in fact understand and agree knowingly to the waiver. The lead opinion relies only on the first basis, but I will address both, and explain why they do not vitiate the waiver.
The Guideline Architecture
In a common-sense manner, the guidelines establish a method for determining a range of possible sentences, from which the judge generally may chose a sentence. Thus, a common range might be 90-120 months, from which the judge could chose a particular specific sentence. However, the guidelines specifically contemplate that this “range” can be altered when required by statute as, for example, with a mandatory minimum or maximum sentence. The guidelines specifically state, at U.S. Sentencing Guidelines Manual (“U.S.S.G”) § 5G1.1(b) (2007), that when the otherwise applicable range is impacted by such a restraint, the applicable “range” is now restricted so that the minimum of the range is the statutory minimum, or the maximum of the range is the statutory maximum.
Thus, if, in the above example, there were a mandatory minimum of 100 months, the “range” would become 100— 120 months. Further, under the explicit language of this section, if the mandatory minimum were to be 120 months, the “range” would clearly be 120-120 months, or, in fact a single point. U.S.S.G. § 5G1.1(c)(2). Gibney, 519 F.3d at 303 (interpreting a plea agreement that said the defendant waived his right to appeal “a sentence of imprisonment within the applicable Guideline Range, but not less than any mandatory minimum sentence required by law.”). I don’t think there is any disagreement in the analysis thus. far.
In the case of a mandatory minimum that is above the otherwise established “range,” the guideline language simply says that the mandatory minimum is the guideline sentence. U.S.S.G. § 5Gl.l(b). However, as just indicated, there is nothing anomalous with the approved “range” being a single point, and thus I see no dispositive significance in the use of “guideline sentence”.rather than “guideline range” in also specifying a single point that is the appropriate sentence under the guidelines.
The general import of “range” in the guideline architecture is to specify all possible sentences that a judge can give without entering the areas of considerations of “departures from the guideline range” as governed by §§ 5K1.1-5K2.24 of the guidelines.
Analysis of This Case
That is exactly what happened in this case. In fact, the normal sentence, available without engaging in the analysis required for a permissible departure, was the sentence that Jones actually received, 180 months. Thus, I believe that the judge’s sentence did not trigger the “above the maximum of the guideline range” exception to Jones’s waiver of his appeal rights.
The plea agreement signed by the defendant unambiguously indicates that he will be sentenced to a minimum of 180 months in prison. Plea Agreement ¶ 3 (noting that the statutory minimum sentence for violating 21 U.S.C. § 841 (b) (1) (A) (iii) is a ten-year term of imprisonment and the statutory minimum sentence for violating 18 U.S.C. § 924(c) is a five-year term of imprisonment to run consecutive with any other sentence.).
In addition, the colloquy at the sentencing hearing, although initially complicated, thoroughly thrashed out and explained the required sentence. The defendant quite perspicaciously asked “but if it’s a mandatory minimum, does that mean — that *576means he [the judge] has to stay at that amount?” and the judge clearly answers: “Yes.” After some further discussion, the prosecutor stated: “[T]he judge is still subject to the mandatory minimum and he cannot, under the law, sentence you to anything under the mandatory minimum unless the government asks for the release of the mandatory minimum.” The defendant responds “Right. Okay.” His counsel also agrees and the defendant then says, in his own words: “So the judge is bound by the mandatory mínimums regardless of anything else that’s going on.... ” The court then says again “[y]ou have agreed to ... giving up your rights to appeal your sentence to a higher court. If [I] were to sentence you above the guidelines you continue to have your right to appeal to a higher court.” And defendant specifically says that he understands and agrees to this.
As I read the transcript, this issue was thoroughly explored and defendant understood that the mandatory minimum operated as the guideline sentence, and I would not give him a second bite at the apple when the waiver of appeal was part of the bargained-for plea agreement. Thus, I agree with the ultimate outcome that Jones should get no relief, but I do so for the reason that I believe that we should enforce the appeal waiver.