United States v. Matthew Richardson
21-1120
| 7th Cir. | Jun 30, 2021Background
- Richardson stipulated to a prior felony and pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of a firearm by a felon under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1).
- Facts supporting the plea included selling a shotgun and meth to an informant, a home search finding a revolver with its serial number filed off, and Richardson’s admissions that he sold meth and two other guns (four guns total).
- The district court applied U.S.S.G. § 2K2.1, imposed enhancements (three-to-seven firearms, obliterated serial number, firearm in connection with another felony), granted acceptance-of-responsibility, and calculated an offense level that yielded a guidelines range of 87–108 months.
- The court sentenced Richardson to a within-guidelines term of 87 months’ imprisonment and 3 years’ supervised release.
- Appointed counsel filed an Anders brief seeking to withdraw as counsel on appeal, stating the appeal was frivolous; Richardson did not respond and did not seek to withdraw his guilty plea.
- The Seventh Circuit limited its review to issues raised in counsel’s Anders brief, found no nonfrivolous issues, granted counsel’s motion to withdraw, and dismissed the appeal.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Validity of guilty plea | Gov’t proceeds on plea; plea not challenged | Richardson does not seek to withdraw plea | Court omitted plea-validity review per counsel/Richardson and precedent; not addressed on appeal |
| Guidelines calculation (grouping and enhancements) | Enhancements appropriate under U.S.S.G. and supported by admissions | Challenge would be meritless; counsel raised and then declined to object at sentencing | Court upheld grouping and enhancements; any appellate challenge waived by failure to object and admissions support enhancements |
| Substantive reasonableness of sentence | 87-month within-guidelines term is reasonable given offense seriousness and § 3553(a) factors | Mitigating arguments: guidelines overstate history, no prior prison, cooperation | Court found within-guidelines sentence presumptively reasonable, properly weighed § 3553(a), rejected mitigation as outweighed by offense gravity |
| Anders motion / counsel withdrawal | Gov’t did not oppose proper Anders procedure | Richardson did not respond to Anders brief | Court granted counsel’s motion to withdraw and dismissed the frivolous appeal |
Key Cases Cited
- Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738 (U.S. 1967) (procedure for counsel to move to withdraw when appeal is frivolous)
- United States v. Bey, 748 F.3d 774 (7th Cir. 2014) (court may limit review to issues raised in Anders brief)
- United States v. Konczak, 683 F.3d 348 (7th Cir. 2012) (no need to raise plea-validity arguments when defendant declines to withdraw plea)
- United States v. Knox, 287 F.3d 667 (7th Cir. 2002) (same principle regarding omission of plea-validity challenges)
- United States v. Greene, 970 F.3d 831 (7th Cir. 2020) (failure to object at sentencing waives appellate challenge to enhancements)
- United States v. Clay, 943 F.3d 805 (7th Cir. 2019) (within-guidelines sentences are presumptively reasonable)
- United States v. Taylor, 907 F.3d 1046 (7th Cir. 2018) (supports presumption of reasonableness for within-guidelines sentences)
- United States v. Lockwood, 840 F.3d 896 (7th Cir. 2016) (district court must properly weigh § 3553(a) factors)
- United States v. McIntyre, 531 F.3d 481 (7th Cir. 2008) (review of sentencing court's consideration of mitigating arguments under § 3553(a))