United States v. Thomas Kelley, 477 F. App'x 401

Kelley was arrested in Minnesota for failure to appear at sentencing after a multi-state search.
A jury convicted Kelley of violating 18 U.S.C. §§ 3146(a)(1), 3146(b)(1)(A)(i), and 3146(b)(2).
Kelley appealed the district court's denial of a continuance and a judgment of acquittal.
On trial, Kelley, pro se, sought a continuance; the court evaluated the request under the abuse-of-discretion standard.
Kelley argued inadequate time to review 1,500 pages and to confer with standby counsel; he had three months to prepare with standby counsel and replaced counsel a week before trial.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the continuance denial was an abuse of discretion	Kelley contends insufficient time to prepare and review materials.	Government argues no compelling reason to delay and preparation was adequate.	No abuse; denial upheld.
Whether Kelley received necessary law enforcement reports	Requests delay due to undisclosed reports possibly with standby counsel.	Kelley had access to discoverable materials; explicit receipt not shown.	Not compelling; denial affirmed.
Whether there was sufficient evidence of knowing and willful failure to appear	Goverment must prove willfulness beyond reasonable doubt.	None specified; Kelley fled in fear after finding arrest warrant.	Evidence supported knowing and willful failure to appear.

United States v. Jones, 643 F.3d 275 (8th Cir. 2011) (continuance standard and abuse of discretion)
United States v. Joos, 638 F.3d 581 (8th Cir. 2011) (factors for evaluating continuance prejudice and preparation)
United States v. Bonilla-Siciliano, 643 F.3d 589 (8th Cir. 2011) (egregiousness of delay; fundamental fairness standard)
United States v. El Herman, 583 F.3d 576 (8th Cir. 2009) (de novo review of acquittal findings)
United States v. Worman, 622 F.3d 969 (8th Cir. 2010) (standard for evaluating the sufficiency of the evidence)