Background
Sammie Joe Peralta pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and received a sentence of two hundred forty months. He appealed the conviction and sentence, but the government moved to enforce the appeal waiver in his plea agreement.
The court’s reasoning
The court applied contract principles to construe the appellate waiver, finding the plain language of the plea agreement waived the right to appeal the conviction and any sentence at or under the maximum statutory penalty. The court rejected the defendant’s argument that the magistrate judge’s colloquy narrowed the waiver’s scope or that the waiver did not cover Second Amendment challenges. The court found the waiver was knowing and voluntary and that enforcing it would not result in a miscarriage of justice.
What it means going forward
Defendants who sign plea agreements with broad appeal waivers in the Tenth Circuit may be barred from appealing their conviction or sentence, even if they raise constitutional challenges, unless the sentence exceeds the statutory maximum or the waiver was not entered knowingly and voluntarily.
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