United States v. Joshua Thoma

Filing

PER CURIAM OPINION FILED - THE COURT: Roger L. Wollman, Pasco M. Bowman and Diana E. Murphy (UNPUBLISHED); Granting [4338983-2] motion to withdraw as counsel filed by Ms. Anna Marie Williams. [4382168] [15-3500]

United States Court of Appeals
For the Eighth Circuit
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No. 15-3500
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United States of America
lllllllllllllllllllll Plaintiff - Appellee
v.
Joshua Thomas
lllllllllllllllllllll Defendant - Appellant
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Appeal from United States District Court
for the Western District of Arkansas - Fayetteville
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Submitted: March 23, 2016
Filed: March 28, 2016
[Unpublished]
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Before WOLLMAN, BOWMAN, and MURPHY, Circuit Judges.
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PER CURIAM.
Joshua Thomas directly appeals the sentence imposed by the district court1
after he pleaded guilty to one count of possessing child pornography. His counsel has
1

The Honorable Timothy L. Brooks, United States District Judge for the
Western District of Arkansas.

Appellate Case: 15-3500

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Date Filed: 03/28/2016 Entry ID: 4382168

moved to withdraw, and has filed a brief under Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738
(1967), arguing that the sentence was unreasonable. We conclude that the belowGuidelines sentence was not substantively unreasonable. See United States v.
Salazar-Aleman, 741 F.3d 878, 881 (8th Cir. 2013) (under substantive review, district
court abuses its discretion if it fails to consider relevant factor, gives significant
weight to improper or irrelevant factor, or commits clear error of judgment in
weighing factors); United States v. Lazarski, 560 F.3d 731, 733 (8th Cir. 2009) (when
downward variance is granted, it is “nearly inconceivable” that court abuses
discretion in not varying downward further). We have reviewed the record
independently under Penson v. Ohio, 488 U.S. 75 (1988), and we find no
nonfrivolous issues for appeal.
Accordingly, we affirm the judgment, and we grant counsel’s motion to
withdraw.
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Appellate Case: 15-3500

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Date Filed: 03/28/2016 Entry ID: 4382168