USA v. Clevenger

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE
AT KNOXVILLE
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, 	)
)
Plaintiff, 	)
v. 	) 	No. 3:25-CR-76-TAV-DCP
)
JOHN DANIEL CLEVENGER, 	)
)
Defendant. 	)
MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
This case is before the Court on Defendant John Daniel Clevenger’s Unopposed Motion to
Continue Deadlines and Trial Date [Doc. 20], filed on March 6, 2026.
Defendant asks the Court to continue the current trial date, which is set for April 7, 2026,
and all associated deadlines in this matter [Id.]. In support of his motion, Defendant states that his
counsel and the government are in good communication regarding this case and that they need
additional time to work to reach a resolution in this matter [Id. ¶ 1]. The motion reflects that the
Government does not object to the requested continuance [Id. ¶ 4]. Defendant understands that the
period of time between the filing of this motion for continuance and a rescheduled court date will
be fully excludable for speedy trial purposes [Id. ¶ 3].
Based upon the information contained in the motion and because the Government does not
oppose the continuance, the Court finds the ends of justice served by granting a continuance
outweigh the interests of Defendant and the public in a speedy trial. See 18 U.S.C. § 3161(h)(7)(A).
In making this determination, the Court has considered the factors set forth in 18 U.S.C.
§ 3161(h)(7)(B). Specifically, the Court concludes that not granting a continuance would both
result in a miscarriage of justice and deny counsel for Defendant the reasonable time necessary for
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effective preparation, accounting for the exercise of due diligence. See id. § 3161(h)(7)(B)(i), (iv).
Counsel for Defendant needs time to work towards a resolution of this matter, and if that is not
successful, otherwise prepare for trial. The Court finds that all of this cannot occur before the April
7, 2026 trial date.
The Court therefore GRANTS Defendant John Daniel Clevenger’s Unopposed motion to
Continue Deadlines and Trial Date [Doc. 20]. The trial of this case is reset to June 30, 2026. A
new schedule is included below. Because the Court has found that the ends of justice served by
granting a continuance outweigh the interests of Defendant and the public in a speedy trial, all time
between the filing of the initial motion on March 6, 2026, and the new trial date is fully excludable
time under the Speedy Trial Act. See 18 U.S.C. § 3161(h)(1)(D), (h)(7)(A)–(B).
Accordingly, the Court ORDERS as follows:
(1) 	Defendant John Daniel Clevenger’s Unopposed motion to Continue
Deadlines and Trial Date [Doc. 20] is GRANTED;
(2) 	the trial of this matter is reset to commence on June 23, 2026, at
9:00 a.m., before the Honorable Thomas A. Varlan, United States
District Judge;
(3) 	all time between the filing of the motion on March 6, 2026, and the
new trial date of June 23, 2026, is fully excludable time under the
Speedy Trial Act for the reasons set forth herein;
(4) 	the deadline for filing a plea agreement in the record and providing
reciprocal discovery is May 22, 2026;
(5) 	the deadline for filing motions in limine is June 8, 2026, and
responses to motions in limine are due on or before June 16, 2026;
(6) 	the parties are to appear before the undersigned for a final pretrial
conference on June 4, 2026, at 2:00 p.m.; and
(7) 	requests for special jury instructions with appropriate citations to
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authority pursuant to Local Rule 7.4 shall be filed on or before
June 12, 2026.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
ENTER:
_______________________________
Debra C. Poplin
United States Magistrate Judge
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