United States of America v. Emmanuel Suarez

United States Court of Appeals
For the Eighth Circuit
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No. 15-3620
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United States of America
lllllllllllllllllllll Plaintiff - Appellee
v.
Emmanuel Suarez
lllllllllllllllllllll Defendant - Appellant
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Appeal from United States District Court
for the Eastern District of Missouri - St. Louis
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Submitted: June 17, 2016
Filed: June 20, 2016
[Unpublished]
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Before COLLOTON, GRUENDER, and KELLY, Circuit Judges.
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PER CURIAM.
Emmanuel Suarez appeals after he pled guilty to drug and gun charges pursuant
to a plea agreement, and the district court 1 sentenced him to prison terms totaling 120
1The Honorable E. Richard Webber, United States District Judge for the Eastern
District of Missouri.

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months. His counsel has moved for leave to withdraw and has filed a brief under
Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738 (1967), arguing that Suarez’s plea was not
knowing and voluntary. We conclude that counsel’s argument presents no meritorious
basis for reversing. See United States v. Foy, 617 F.3d 1029, 1033-34 (8th Cir. 2010)
(claim that guilty plea was not knowing and voluntary is not cognizable on direct
appeal where defendant failed to present it to district court in first instance by motion
to withdraw guilty plea). Furthermore, having independently reviewed the record
pursuant to Penson v. Ohio, 488 U.S. 75 (1988), we find no non-frivolous issues for
appeal.
Accordingly, we grant counsel’s motion for leave to withdraw, and we affirm.
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