United States v. Wells, No. 21-5890 (6th Cir. 2022)
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Wells was charged with conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. At his request, the magistrate appointed new counsel and granted continuances. The trial was scheduled for May 2021. In April, Wells pleaded guilty, admitted to the factual allegations, and stated that he had no complaints about his lawyer’s performance. The court scheduled sentencing for August 18; on June 23, Wells sought to withdraw his plea and requested new counsel, alleging that he was misled "about the circumstances of the case.” Wells stated he entered into the plea because of his "assumption that [he] was being charged with another charge.” Counsel explained that Wells had allegedly engaged in conduct that constituted material false statements to a federal officer. Wells confirmed that he wanted to avoid additional charges. Wells then argued that he was not guilty of the conspiracy. Wells confirmed he was able to talk to and understand his counsel.
The court declined to replace his counsel but moved the sentencing hearing to September so Wells and his counsel could confer. The court applied a four-level enhancement for Wells’s alleged role as an organizer or leader of the conspiracy, resulting in a Guidelines range of 210-262 months with a mandatory minimum of 120 months. The court considered the 18 U.S.C. 3553(a) factors and mitigating factors, and sentenced Wells to 197 months. The Sixth Circuit affirmed, rejecting arguments that the court 1erred in denying the request to substitute counsel, erred in applying the four-level role enhancement, improperly balanced the 3553(a) factors, and imposed a substantively unreasonable sentence.
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