United States v. Henry De William Jackson, Jr.

659 F.2d 73, 1981 U.S. App. LEXIS 16849

• Court: Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
• Decided: October 15, 1981
• Docket: 81-7168
• Status: Published

Opinion

PER CURIAM:

Appellant Henry De William Jackson, Jr. pleaded guilty to a charge of air piracy in United States District Court, Northern District of Alabama. The plea was in connection with the 1972 hijacking, by appellant and two confederates, of a domestic Southern Airways’ jet. During the incident, the hijackers commanded the jet to more than 10 cities and two foreign countries and eventually ordered landing in Cuba but only after wounding the jet’s co-pilot and extracting $2 million in ransom money.

Appellant was incarcerated in Cuba from 1972 until 1980, when he was returned to the United States. He complains on this direct appeal that the United States did not, with sufficient vigor, negotiate for his extradition. We do not reach this issue, for it is clear under our authorities that appellant, through his voluntary guilty plea, has waived his objection on this ground. “The issue of the right to a speedy trial is non-jurisdictional in nature .... A guilty plea, since it admits all the elements of a formal criminal charge, waives all non-jurisdictional defects in the proceedings against a defendant.” United States v. Saldana, 505 F.2d 628, 629 (5th Cir. 1974) (summary calendar) (citations omitted). See also United States v. Broussard, 645 F.2d 504, 505 (5th Cir. 1981) (summary calendar). Furthermore, it is clear from the record that appellant’s guilty plea was unconditional.

AFFIRMED.