United States v. Saquon Dozier

• Court: Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
• Decided: September 1, 2023
• Docket: 22-4233
• Status: Unpublished

Opinion

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UNPUBLISHED

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 22-4233

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff - Appellee,

v.

SAQUON DEVON DOZIER,

Defendant - Appellant.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, at Greensboro. William L. Osteen, Jr., District Judge. (1:21-cr-00251-WO-3)

Submitted: July 31, 2023 Decided: September 1, 2023

Before WILKINSON and AGEE, Circuit Judges, and TRAXLER, Senior Circuit Judge.

Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

ON BRIEF: Mark A. Jones, BELL, DAVIS & PITT, P.A., Winston-Salem, North Carolina, for Appellant. Nicole Royer DuPre, Assistant United States Attorney, OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY, Greensboro, North Carolina, for Appellee.

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PER CURIAM:

Saquon Devon Dozier seeks to appeal his conviction and sentence after pleading

guilty to possession of a firearm by a felon. On appeal, Dozier’s attorney has filed a brief

under Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738 (1967), concluding that there are no nonfrivolous

grounds for appeal but raising the issues of whether his guilty plea and appeal waiver were

knowing and voluntary, and whether his sentence is reasonable. The Government has

moved to dismiss the appeal as barred by Dozier’s appeal waiver. Dozier was notified of

his right to file a pro se supplemental brief but has not done so. We dismiss the appeal.

“In order for a guilty plea to be valid, the Constitution imposes ‘the minimum

requirement that [the] plea be the voluntary expression of [the defendant’s] own choice.’”

United States v. Moussaoui, 591 F.3d 263, 278 (4th Cir. 2010). “It must reflect a voluntary

and intelligent choice among the alternative courses of action open to the defendant.” Id.

(internal quotation marks omitted). “In evaluating the constitutional validity of a guilty

plea, courts look to the totality of the circumstances surrounding [it], granting the

defendant’s solemn declaration of guilt a presumption of truthfulness.” Id. (internal

quotation marks omitted). Rule 11 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure “governs

the duty of the trial judge before accepting a guilty plea.” Boykin v. Alabama, 395 U.S.

238, 243 n.5 (1969); United States v. Soloff, 993 F.3d 240, 244 (4th Cir. 2021).

Rule 11 “requires a judge to address a defendant about to enter a plea of guilty, to

ensure that he understands the law of his crime in relation to the facts of his case, as well

as his rights as a criminal defendant.” United States v. Vonn, 535 U.S. 55, 62 (2002). “The

court also must determine that the plea is voluntary and that there is a factual basis for the

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plea.” United States v. Williams, 811 F.3d 621, 622 (4th Cir. 2016). We review the entire

record to evaluate a challenge to the validity of a plea. See Greer v. United States, 141 S.

Ct. 2090, 2098 (2021); United States v. Vonn, 535 U.S. 55, 58-59 (2002); United States v.

Heyward, 42 F.4th 460, 467 (4th Cir. 2022). When a defendant appeals the validity of a

guilty plea but did not preserve the challenge in the district court, this Court reviews for

plain error. United States v. Miller, __ F.4th __, 2023 WL 4673749, at *4 (4th Cir. July

21, 2023); United States v. Aplicano-Oyuela, 792 F.3d 416, 422 (4th Cir. 2015).

“We have consistently held that appellate waivers in valid plea agreements are

enforceable.” Soloff, 993 F.3d at 243. “When the government seeks to enforce an appeal

waiver and has not breached the plea agreement, we will enforce the waiver if it is valid

and if the issue being appealed falls within the scope of the waiver.” United States v.

Boutcher, 998 F.3d 603, 608 (4th Cir. 2021) (internal quotation marks omitted). We review

an appeal waiver de novo to determine whether it is enforceable. Id.

“A ‘valid’ appeal waiver is one entered by the defendant knowingly and

intelligently, a determination that we make by considering the totality of the

circumstances.” Id. “When a district court questions a defendant during a Rule 11 hearing

regarding an appeal waiver and the record shows that the defendant understood the import

of his concessions, we generally will hold that the waiver is valid.” Id. “[W]e have

explained that ‘a district court’s failure to strictly abide by Rule 11 will not alone render

an appellate waiver unenforceable.’” Soloff, 993 F.3d at 244. “Consistent with Rule 11’s

harmless error provision, ‘[f]orm should not prevail over substance’ in evaluating the

enforceability of appellate waiver provisions.” Id.

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“Plea agreements are grounded in contract law, and as with any contract, each party

is entitled to receive the benefit of his bargain.” United States v. Edgell, 914 F.3d 281, 287

(4th Cir. 2019) (internal quotation marks omitted). But, “[a] defendant who waives his

right to appeal a plea ‘retains the right to obtain appellate review of his sentence on certain

limited grounds.’” United States v. McCoy, 895 F.3d 358, 363 (4th Cir. 2018). “An appeal

waiver does not preclude a defendant from challenging a sentence ‘based on a

constitutionally impermissible factor’ or ‘a sentence imposed in excess of the maximum

penalty provided by statute.’” United States v. Cornette, 932 F.3d 204, 209 (4th Cir. 2019).

Moreover, “even valid appeal waivers do not bar claims that a factual basis is insufficient

to support a guilty plea.” McCoy, 895 F.3d at 364. “The rationale for these exceptions is

that they present claims that if true, would render the plea itself unknowing or involuntary.”

Id. at 363; see also United States v. Adams, 814 F.3d 178, 182 (4th Cir. 2016) (noting this

Court will not enforce an appeal waiver if doing so would result in a miscarriage of justice,

and ruling that cognizable claim of actual innocence fell outside scope of waiver).

Upon our review of the record, we conclude that Dozier has not shown any plain

error by the district court in accepting his guilty plea affecting his substantial rights, and

his guilty plea was knowing and voluntary. We further conclude that Dozier knowingly

and voluntarily waived his right to appeal his conviction and sentence, and the issues raised

on appeal fall within the scope of the waiver. We have also reviewed the record for any

potentially meritorious issues that might fall outside the waiver and have found none.

Accordingly, we grant the Government’s motion to dismiss the appeal. This court

requires that counsel inform Dozier, in writing, of his right to petition the Supreme Court

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of the United States for further review. If Dozier requests that a petition be filed, but

counsel believes that such a petition would be frivolous, then counsel may move in this

court for leave to withdraw from representation. Counsel’s motion must state that a copy

thereof was served on Dozier. We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal

contentions are adequately presented in the materials before the court and argument would

not aid the decisional process.

DISMISSED