United States v. Windham, No. 21-3881 (6th Cir. 2022)
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Windham was charged with kidnapping, 18 U.S.C. 1201(a)(1) and 18 U.S.C. 2. Windham’s attorney told the court that he had gone over the indictment “word by word” with Windham. The court advised Windham that he was “charged with kidnapping and with aiding and abetting kidnapping” in violation of the federal kidnapping statute. In a pro se motion, Windham later wrote that he had “been indicted [on] one count of ‘kidnapping[,]’” confirming that he understood that he had been charged with a single count. Windham’s negotiated plea agreement provided that he pleaded guilty to a single count of kidnapping and listed the elements of 18 U.S.C. 1201(a)(1) and aiding and abetting under 18 U.S.C. 2. The agreement also included Windham's admission that he and his accomplices held M.S. at gunpoint for an extended period of time and confirmed that he used a cell phone and a motor vehicle in furtherance of that offense. At his plea hearing, Windham confirmed that he: signed the plea agreement; initialed each page; and read and reviewed each paragraph with his attorney.
The court sentenced Windham to 120 months in prison. The Sixth Circuit affirmed, rejecting Windham’s arguments that no factual basis supported his guilty plea and that he was unaware of the nature of the charges against him.
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