United States v. Lamar Hamilton, 1:24-cr-20502

Defendant Lamar Hamilton appeared before the Southern District of Florida to enter a change of plea from not guilty to guilty on multiple counts related to financial crimes.
The hearing was referred to Magistrate Judge Lisette M. Reid by District Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga.
Hamilton consented for the magistrate judge to conduct the hearing and confirmed his mental competence and understanding of the proceedings.
He pleaded guilty to Count 3 (bank fraud), Count 6 (aggravated identity theft), and Count 8 (use of unauthorized access devices).
The court reviewed the plea agreement, penalties, and forfeiture provisions with Hamilton, who acknowledged and agreed to all terms.
A pre-sentence investigation report is being prepared, and sentencing will be set before Judge Altonaga.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Validity of plea colloquy and waiver	Plea was knowing and voluntary	Plea was knowing and voluntary	Plea colloquy satisfactory; plea accepted
Competence of defendant	Hamilton was competent at hearing	Hamilton agreed he was competent	Defendant competent to proceed
Factual basis for guilty plea	Government provided sufficient basis	Hamilton agreed to the proffer	Factual basis exists; plea supported
Scope of appeal waiver	Waiver applies unless sentence illegal	Defendant knowingly waived appeal	Appeal waiver valid except for specified limits

Harrigan v. Metro-Dade Police Dep’t Station #4, 977 F.3d 1185 (11th Cir. 2020) (outlines appellate review and waiver procedures in criminal pleas)