US v. Rodney Palmer

Filing

UNPUBLISHED PER CURIAM OPINION filed. Originating case number: 2:10-cr-00280-DCN-1 Copies to all parties and the district court/agency. [998961022].. [12-4072]

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UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 12-4072

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
v.
RODNEY PALMER,
Defendant – Appellant.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of
South Carolina, at Charleston. David C. Norton, District Judge.
(2:10-cr-00280-DCN-1)

Submitted:

October 9, 2012

Decided:

October 17, 2012

Before DUNCAN, AGEE, and WYNN, Circuit Judges.

Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

Michael Chesser, Aiken, South Carolina, for Appellant.
William
N. Nettles, United States Attorney, Susan Z. Hitt, Assistant
United States Attorney, Columbia, South Carolina, for Appellee.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.

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PER CURIAM:
Rodney Palmer appeals his conviction after a guilty
plea to using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a
drug trafficking crime and a crime of violence, in violation of
18 U.S.C. § 924(c)(1)(A) (2006).
that

the

district

negotiations

by

court

On appeal, Palmer contends

impermissibly

initiating

plea

participated

discussions,

in

advising

plea
Palmer

that he would be better off pleading guilty, suggesting he would
receive a life sentence if he went to trial, and commenting
favorably on the Government’s evidence.

Palmer also contends

that the district court erred in denying his motion to withdraw
his guilty plea because the court’s participation in the plea
negotiations rendered his plea involuntary.
Rule

11(c)(1)

of

the

We affirm.

Federal

Rules

of

Criminal

Procedure “governs guilty pleas and clearly prohibits a court
from

participating

in

plea

negotiations.”

Bradley, 455 F.3d 452, 460 (4th Cir. 2006).
was

not

States v.
Palmer
rights.

raised

below,

Martinez,

must

show

277
that

review
F.3d
any

is

517,
errors

for
525

United

States

v.

Because this issue

plain

error,

United

(4th

Cir.

2002),

and

affected

his

substantial

United States v. Massenburg, 564 F.3d 337, 343 (4th

Cir. 2009).

After reviewing the record and briefs, we conclude

that the district court did not impermissibly participate in
plea negotiations.

The court’s comments at the pretrial status
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hearing cannot be construed as coercing Palmer into pleading
guilty; rather, they were all made in the context of evaluating
whether to relieve Palmer’s second court-appointed counsel and
to

warn

appointed

Palmer

not

counsel

to

take

lightly.

his

decision

Furthermore,

to

replace

Palmer’s

court-

contention

that the court coerced him into pleading guilty is belied by his
entering into the plea agreement four months after the status
hearing and acknowledging in his plea colloquy that he was not
coerced into pleading guilty.

See Fields v. Attorney Gen., 956

F.2d 1290, 1299 (4th Cir. 1992) (holding that, “[a]bsent clear
and convincing evidence to the contrary, a defendant is bound by
the

representations

he

makes

under

oath

during

a

plea

colloquy”).
Turning

to

Palmer’s

motion

to

withdraw

his

guilty

plea, we review the district court’s denial of the motion for
abuse of discretion.

United States v. Ubakanma, 215 F.3d 421,

424 (4th Cir. 2000).

A defendant bears the burden of “show[ing]

a fair and just reason” for the withdrawal of his guilty plea.
Fed.

R.

Crim.

P.

11(d)(2)(B).

Having

determined

that

the

district court here did not impermissibly participate in the
plea negotiations, we also conclude that the court’s failure to
inform Palmer he could persist in his plea of not guilty, see
Fed. R. Crim. P. 11(b)(1)(B), did not affect his substantial
rights, that Palmer did not credibly assert his legal innocence,
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and

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that

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Palmer

had

close

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assistance

of

competent

counsel.

Thus, the district court did not abuse its discretion in denying
Palmer’s
States v.

motion
Moore,

to
931

withdraw
F.2d

his

245,

guilty

248

(4th

plea.
Cir.

See
1991)

United
(listing

factors for court to consider in evaluating motion to withdraw
guilty plea); see also United States v. Sparks, 67 F.3d 1145,
1154 (4th Cir. 1995) (holding that first, second, and fourth
Moore factors are most significant).
Accordingly, we affirm the district court’s judgment.
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.
AFFIRMED

4