United States v. Christopher Washington, 19-4501

Christopher Tyshawn Washington pleaded guilty (Feb 2019) to possession with intent to distribute marijuana (21 U.S.C. § 841) and being a felon in possession of a firearm (18 U.S.C. § 922(g)).
The district court sentenced him to concurrent 120-month terms; he appealed.
While his appeal was pending, the Supreme Court decided Rehaif v. United States, holding the government must prove the defendant knew both that he possessed a firearm and that he had the relevant status (e.g., was a felon).
Washington argued on appeal that the indictment and Rule 11 colloquy omitted the Rehaif knowledge-of-status element, rendering his conviction invalid and his plea not knowing and voluntary.
The government had filed a § 851 Information of Prior Conviction, and at the Rule 11 hearing Washington acknowledged awareness of that prior felony.
The Fourth Circuit reviewed Washington’s claims for plain error and affirmed the conviction and sentence.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the indictment was invalid for omitting Rehaif's knowledge-of-status element	Indictment omitted an essential element required by Rehaif, so conviction invalid	Government filed §851 information and Washington acknowledged prior felony; guilty plea waives sufficiency challenge	No plain error; indictment valid for purposes of plea and waived by guilty plea
Whether the plea was not knowing/voluntary because Rule 11 and factual basis omitted the knowledge element	District court failed to advise of the knowledge element and accepted insufficient factual basis, so plea involuntary	Washington acknowledged his prior conviction; he made no representation he would have introduced evidence he didn’t know he was a felon (as required by Greer)	No plain error; plea was knowing/voluntary and prior convictions supplied substantial evidence he knew he was a felon

Rehaif v. United States, 139 S. Ct. 2191 (2019) (knowledge-of-status is an element of a §922(g) offense)
Greer v. United States, 141 S. Ct. 2090 (2021) (plain-error framework for Rehaif claims in felon-in-possession cases)
United States v. Cotton, 535 U.S. 625 (2002) (indictment defects do not deprive a court of jurisdiction)
United States v. Quinn, 359 F.3d 666 (4th Cir. 2004) (plain-error review where claim not raised below)
United States v. Vogt, 910 F.2d 1184 (4th Cir. 1990) (presumption in support of indictment sufficiency post-verdict)
United States v. Moussaoui, 591 F.3d 263 (4th Cir. 2010) (guilty plea waives challenges to indictment)