United States of America v. Paul Wesley Howell

UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 23-4191
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
v.
PAUL WESLEY HOWELL,
Defendant - Appellant.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, at
Norfolk. Elizabeth W. Hanes, District Judge. (2:22-cr-00051-EWH-DEM-1)
Submitted: October 31, 2023 Decided: November 3, 2023
Before HARRIS and QUATTLEBAUM, Circuit Judges, and KEENAN, Senior Circuit
Judge.
Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
ON BRIEF: Dennis E. Jones, DENNIS E. JONES, PLC, Abingdon, Virginia, for
Appellant. Jessica D. Aber, United States Attorney, Richmond, Virginia, Kristin Greene
Bird, Special Assistant United States Attorney, Amanda L. Cheney, Assistant United States
Attorney, Norfolk, Virginia, Jacqueline Romy Bechara, OFFICE OF THE UNITED
STATES ATTORNEY, Alexandria, Virginia, for Appellee.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.

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PER CURIAM:
Paul Wesley Howell pled guilty, pursuant to a written plea agreement, to
distribution of methamphetamine in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(B), and
possession of a firearm by a convicted felon in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 922(g),
924(a)(2). The district court sentenced Howell to 110 months’ imprisonment. On
appeal, counsel has filed a brief pursuant to Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738 (1967),
stating that there are no meritorious grounds for appeal but questioning whether a factual
basis supported Howell’s convictions, whether plea counsel rendered ineffective
assistance, and whether the sentence is procedurally and substantively reasonable. The
Government has moved to dismiss the appeal because Howell did not file a timely notice
of appeal.
In criminal cases, the defendant must file the notice of appeal within 14 days after
the entry of judgment. Fed. R. App. P. 4(b)(1)(A). With or without a motion, upon a
showing of excusable neglect or good cause, the district court may grant an extension of
up to 30 days to file a notice of appeal. Fed. R. App. P. 4(b)(4). Although the appeal
period in a criminal case is not a jurisdictional provision, but rather a claim-processing rule,
United States v. Urutyan, 564 F.3d 679, 685 (4th Cir. 2009), “[w]hen the Government
promptly invokes the rule in response to a late-filed criminal appeal, we must dismiss,”
United States v. Oliver, 878 F.3d 120, 123 (4th Cir. 2017).

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The district court entered judgment on December 8, 2022. Howell filed the notice
of appeal on March 13, 2023.∗ Because Howell failed to file a timely notice of appeal or
to obtain an extension of the appeal period and the Government has promptly invoked the
appeal’s untimeliness, see 4th Cir. R. 27(f)(2), we grant the Government’s motion to
dismiss the appeal.
We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are
adequately presented in the materials before this court and argument would not aid the
decisional process.
DISMISSED
∗ For the purpose of this appeal, we assume that the date appearing on the notice of
appeal is the earliest date Howell could have delivered the notice to prison officials for
mailing to the court. Fed. R. App. P. 4(c)(1); Houston v. Lack, 487 U.S. 266, 276 (1988).

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