May 20, 2026·2:24-cr-00433-MHH-GMB-2·Per Curiam·By James Taylor
The Eleventh Circuit granted counsel's motion to withdraw from representing the defendant in a direct criminal appeal. The court affirmed the conviction and sentence after an independent review found no arguable issues of merit.
Ricco Jerome Hicks appealed his conviction and sentence in a direct criminal appeal. Perry Russell Steen, appointed counsel, moved to withdraw from representation.
The court’s reasoning
The court conducted an independent review of the entire record to assess the relative merit of the appeal. The review revealed no arguable issues of merit, confirming counsel’s assessment.
Our independent review of the entire record reveals that counsel’s assessment of the relative merit of the appeal is correct.
USCA11 Case: 25-13278 Document: 32-1
What it means going forward
The defendant’s conviction and sentence stand as the court found no merit in the appeal.
