March 26, 2026·4:24-cr-00003-MW-MAF-2·Per Curiam·By James Taylor
The Eleventh Circuit granted appointed counsel's motion to withdraw from representing the defendant in a direct criminal appeal. The court affirmed the defendant's convictions and sentence after an independent review found no arguable issues of merit.
Background
Cleveland Blackshear, III, appealed his criminal convictions and sentence from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida. Appointed counsel, Sheryl J. Lowenthal, moved to withdraw from the case and filed a brief pursuant to Anders v. California.
The court’s reasoning
The court conducted an independent examination of the entire record. This review confirmed that counsel’s assessment was correct and revealed no arguable issues of merit.
Our independent review of the entire record reveals that counsel’s assessment of the relative merit of the appeal is correct.
What it means going forward
The decision allows appointed counsel to withdraw from the representation while upholding the underlying criminal judgment.
