United States District Court, E.D. Texas, Beaumont Division
FINDINGS OF FACT AND RECOMMENDATION ON GUILTY PLEA
BEFORE THE UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
Zack
Hawthorn United States Magistrate Judge.
By
order of the District Court, this matter is referred to the
undersigned United States Magistrate Judge for administration
of the guilty plea under Rule 11. Magistrate judges have the
statutory authority to conduct a felony guilty plea
proceeding as an “additional duty” pursuant to 28
U.S.C. § 636(b)(3). United States v.
Bolivar-Munoz, 313 F.3d 253, 255 (5th Cir. 2002).
On July
29, 2019, this case came before the undersigned magistrate
judge for entry of a guilty plea by the Defendant, Anibal
Juarez-Ramirez, to Count One of the Indictment. Count One
alleges that on or about June 6, 2019, Anibal Juarez-Ramirez,
the Defendant, an alien who had previously been deported or
removed from the United States to Mexico on or about
September 17, 2011, was found in the Eastern District of
Texas, said Defendant not having received the express consent
of the Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland
Security, the successor, pursuant to United States Code,
Title 6, for re-application for admission to the United
States, all in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1326(a) - Reentry
of a Deported Alien.
The
Defendant entered a plea of guilty to Count One of the
Indictment into the record at the hearing. After conducting
the proceeding in the form and manner prescribed by Federal
Rule of Criminal Procedure 11, the undersigned finds:
a. That the Defendant, after consultation with his attorney,
has knowingly, freely and voluntarily consented to the
administration of the guilty plea in this case by a United
States Magistrate Judge in the Eastern District of Texas,
subject to a final approval and imposition of sentence by the
District Court.
b. That the Defendant and the Government have entered into a
plea agreement which was disclosed and addressed in open
court, entered into the record, and placed under seal. The
Defendant verified that he understood the terms of the plea
agreement, and he acknowledged that it was his signature on
the plea agreement. To the extent the plea agreement contains
recommendations and requests pursuant to Fed. R. Crim. P. 11
(c)(1)(B), the court advised the Defendant that he has no
right to withdraw the plea if the court does not follow the
particular recommendations or requests. To the extent that
any or all of the terms of the plea agreement are pursuant to
Rule 11(c)(1)(A) or (C), the undersigned advised the
Defendant that he will have the opportunity to withdraw his
plea of guilty should the court not follow those particular
terms of the plea agreement.[1]
c. That the Defendant is fully competent and capable of
entering an informed plea, that the Defendant is aware of the
nature of the charges and the consequences of the plea, and
that the plea of guilty is made freely, knowingly, and
voluntarily. Upon addressing the Defendant personally in open
court, the undersigned determines that the Defendant's
plea is knowing and voluntary and did not result from force,
threats or promises (other than the promises set forth in the
plea agreement). See Fed. R. Crim. P. 11(b)(2).
d. That the Defendant's knowing and voluntary plea is
supported by an independent factual basis establishing each
of the essential elements of the offense and the Defendant
realizes that his conduct falls within the definition of the
crime charged under 8 U.S.C. § 1326(a) -Reentry of a
Deported Alien.
STATEMENT
OF REASONS
As
factual support for the Defendant's guilty plea, the
Government presented a factual basis. See Factual
Basis and Stipulation. In support, the Government would prove
that the Defendant is the same person charged in the
Indictment, and that the events described in the Indictment
occurred in the Eastern District of Texas. The Government
would also have proven, beyond a reasonable doubt, each and
every essential element of the offense as alleged in Count
One of the Indictment through the testimony of witnesses,
including expert witnesses, and admissible exhibits. In
support of the Defendant's plea, the undersigned
incorporates the proffer of evidence described in detail in
the factual basis and stipulation filed in support of the
plea agreement, and the Defendant's admissions made in
open court in response to the undersigned's further
inquiry into the factual basis and stipulation.
The
Defendant agreed with and stipulated to the evidence
presented in the factual basis. Counsel for the Defendant and
the Government attested to the Defendant's competency and
capability to enter an informed plea of guilty. The Defendant
agreed with the evidence presented by the Government and
personally testified that he was entering the guilty plea
knowingly, freely and voluntarily.
RECOMMENDED
DISPOSITION
IT
IS THEREFORE the recommendation of the undersigned
United States Magistrate Judge that the District Court accept
the Guilty Plea of the Defendant, which the undersigned
determines to be supported by an independent factual basis
establishing each of the essential elements of the offense
charged in Count One of the Indictment. Accordingly, it is
further recommended that the District Court finally adjudge
the Defendant, Anibal Juarez-Ramirez, guilty of the charged
offense under 8 U.S.C. § 1326(a) - Reentry of a Deported
Alien.
The
District Court should defer its decision to accept or reject
the plea agreement until there has been an opportunity to
review the presentence report. If the plea agreement is
rejected and the Defendant still persists in his guilty plea,
the disposition of the case may be less favorable to the
Defendant than that contemplated by the plea agreement. The
Defendant is ordered to report to the United States Probation
Department for the ...