Background
Deshawn Stephone Hester pled guilty to two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon under federal law. The district court sentenced him to ninety-seven months in prison. On appeal, counsel filed a brief under Anders v. California stating there were no meritorious grounds for appeal but questioning the plea and sentence. The government moved to dismiss the appeal based on the appellate waiver in the plea agreement.
The court’s reasoning
The court reviewed the plea colloquy for plain error and found the plea was valid. The court determined the appellate waiver was valid and enforceable because Hester entered it knowingly and intelligently. The court found no potentially meritorious grounds for appeal outside the scope of the waiver.
A properly conducted Rule 11 plea colloquy raises a strong presumption that the plea is final and binding.
United States v. Walker, 934 F.3d 375, 377 n.1 (4th Cir. 2019)
What it means going forward
The decision reinforces the enforceability of appellate waivers in plea agreements and clarifies the scope of Anders review when a waiver exists.