United States v. Kebrum Teklu

513 F. App'x 228
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Third Circuit
DecidedFebruary 7, 2013
Docket11-1790
StatusUnpublished

This text of 513 F. App'x 228 (United States v. Kebrum Teklu) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Kebrum Teklu, 513 F. App'x 228 (3d Cir. 2013).

Opinion

OPINION OF THE COURT

SCIRICA, Circuit Judge.

Kebrum Teklu appeals his judgment of conviction and sentence arising from a conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery (18 U.S.C. § 1951(a)). Teklu contends the government breached its plea agreement by failing to fulfill a purported oral promise. We will affirm.

I.

In October 2008, Teklu was indicted on seven counts arising from a string of armed robberies in the Philadelphia region: one count of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery (18 U.S.C. § 1951(a)) (Count 1); three counts of Hobbs Act robbery (18 U.S.C. § 1951(a)) (Counts 4, 14, and 16); and three counts of carrying a firearm during a violent crime (18 U.S.C. § 924(c)) (Counts 5, 15, and 17). Teklu was unemployed when the robberies were committed, but had previously worked at Delancey Street Bagels — one of the targeted businesses.

Pursuant to a written plea agreement, Teklu pled guilty to all of the charges against him except one gun charge — Count 17. In exchange for his guilty plea, the government agreed to move to dismiss the *230 remaining gun charge at Teklu’s sentencing if he cooperated in the prosecution of his coconspirators. An integration clause limited the terms of Teklu’s plea to those in the written agreement. The integration clause also required that subsequent promises be embodied in a writing signed by both parties in order to be considered part of Teklu’s plea agreement. At his change of plea hearing, Teklu confirmed the terms of the written plea agreement.

Teklu then testified against Devon Brinkley, one of his coconspirators. However, during the Brinkley trial, the government misstated the terms of Teklu’s plea agreement. Instead of explaining that it had promised to drop one gun charge (Count 17) in exchange for Teklu’s testimony, the government incorrectly stated that it had promised to drop two gun charges in exchange for Teklu’s testimony:

Q: And pursuant to th[e written plea] agreement is it true that at the time of sentencing the Government may decide to drop two of the gun charges that are currently pending against you?
A: Yes.

By agreeing with the government’s misstatement, Teklu’s testimony at the Brinkley trial contradicts his earlier acknowledgment that the government would drop only one gun charge in exchange for his cooperation.

Despite his testimony against Brinkley, the government did not move to dismiss Count 17 — let alone two gun charges — at Teklu’s sentencing. Teklu failed to object to this apparent breach of the plea agreement. The district court imposed a sentence of 180 months’ imprisonment on Counts 1, 4, 5, 14, 15, and 16, but significantly did not impose a sentence on Count 17.

II.

The district court had jurisdiction under 18 U.S.C. § 3231. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291. Given Teklu’s failure to object at sentencing, we review for plain error. United States v. Dahmen, 675 F.3d 244, 248 (3d Cir.2012) (citing Puckett v. United States, 556 U.S. 129, 135, 129 S.Ct. 1423, 173 L.Ed.2d 266 (2009)), abrogating United States v. Rivera, 357 F.3d 290 (3d Cir.2004).

In order to prevail on plain error review, a defendant must show: (1) there was an error or defect below (i.e., “some sort of ‘[d]eviation from a legal rule’ ”) that was not “intentionally relinquished or abandoned”; (2) the error is “clear or obvious, rather than subject to reasonable dispute”; and (3) the error “ ‘affected the outcome of the district court proceedings.’ ” Puckett, 556 U.S. at 135, 129 S.Ct. 1423 (alteration in original) (quoting United States v. Olano, 507 U.S. 725, 732-34, 113 S.Ct. 1770, 123 L.Ed.2d 508 (1993)). If these three requirements are met, we have discretion to remedy the error if it “ ‘seriously affects] the fairness, integrity or public reputation of judicial proceedings.’ ” Id. (alteration in original) (quoting Olano, 507 U.S. at 736, 113 S.Ct. 1770).

With respect to the first step of the plain error analysis, we must determine whether the government breached the plea agreement. Here, we look to contract-law standards to determine whether the government’s conduct was inconsistent with the defendant’s reasonable understanding of the agreement when he pled guilty. United States v. Badaracco, 954 F.2d 928, 939 (3d Cir.1992) (citing Santobello v. New York, 404 U.S. 257, 262, 92 S.Ct. 495, 30 L.Ed.2d 427 (1971)).

III.

On appeal, Teklu contends the government breached the plea agreement by fail *231 ing to drop two gun charges. 1 This contention rests on two assumptions. First, it assumes the plea agreement is not limited to the terms of the written plea agreement, but includes the government’s misstatement at the Brinkley trial. Second, it assumes this misstatement constitutes a binding oral promise by the government to drop two gun charges in exchange for Tek-lu’s testimony against Brinkley.

The government argues that Teklu’s plea agreement is limited to the terms of the written plea agreement executed prior to the Brinkley trial. In addition, the government argues that its failure to move to dismiss Count 17 does not constitute a breach of the written plea agreement because the court did not impose a sentence on this count. 2 In other words, Teklu received the benefit of the plea agreement.

IV.

Arguably, the government breached the terms of the written plea agreement by failing to move to dismiss Count 17 at Teklu’s sentencing, but this does not constitute plain error because it did not affect the outcome of the proceedings.

Even if the government’s misstatement at the Brinkley trial could be interpreted as a promise to drop two gun charges, Teklu could not reasonably have understood this purported oral promise to be part of his plea agreement because it did not conform to the integration clause in the written plea agreement (i.e., it was not embodied in a writing signed by both parties).

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Related

Santobello v. New York
404 U.S. 257 (Supreme Court, 1971)
United States v. Olano
507 U.S. 725 (Supreme Court, 1993)
Puckett v. United States
556 U.S. 129 (Supreme Court, 2009)
United States v. Ronald Miller
565 F.2d 1273 (Third Circuit, 1977)
United States v. Ernest J. Badaracco, Jr.
954 F.2d 928 (Third Circuit, 1992)
United States v. Dahmen
675 F.3d 244 (Third Circuit, 2012)
United States v. Isaac Rivera
357 F.3d 290 (Third Circuit, 2004)
United States v. Ramos
971 F. Supp. 199 (E.D. Pennsylvania, 1997)

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Bluebook (online)
513 F. App'x 228, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-kebrum-teklu-ca3-2013.