United States v. Keele

• Decision Date: 07 January 2014
• Docket Number: No. 12-10551,12-10551
• Parties: UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. RICKY J. KEELE, Defendant-Appellant.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Fifth Circuit

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
RICKY J. KEELE, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 12-10551

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT

FILED: January 7, 2014

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas

Before STEWART, Chief Judge, and JOLLY and SMITH, Circuit Judges.

CARL E. STEWART, Chief Judge:

Defendant-Appellant Ricky J. Keele pled guilty to a superseding information that charged him with removing property to prevent seizure and aiding and abetting in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 2232(a) and 2. The district court sentenced Keele and ordered restitution. Despite the general appeal waiver provision contained in his plea agreement, Keele now challenges the district court's restitution order, arguing that it was not encompassed by his appeal waiver. We dismiss.

FACTS

Keele was charged in a superseding bill of information with helping Matthew Simpson dispose of, transfer and conceal a $1,500,000 cashier's check from Citizens Bank of Texas in order to prevent the funds from being seized by

Page 2

the Government. Keele waived his right to an indictment and entered into a written agreement to plead guilty to the superseding information. The plea agreement set maximum sentencing exposure at 24 months and included restitution to the victims arising from "all relevant conduct" and was not limited to the conduct arising from the offense of conviction alone. The plea agreement also contained an appeal waiver which stated that Keele waived the right to appeal his conviction and sentence except in the case of a sentence in excess of the statutory maximum, an involuntary plea or appeal waiver, or ineffective assistance affecting the voluntariness of the plea or appeal waiver.

The presentence report ("PSR") described a long term, complex conspiracy, perpetrated by Keele, Simpson, Michael Faulkner and sixteen other co-defendants, to defraud telecommunication companies of property and services and to defraud individual victims of money, property, and services. Five victim impact statements referenced in Keele's PSR contained losses totaling $3,691,102.70. However, according to the second, third and fourth superseding information, the aggregate loss of all victims of the conspiracy was estimated to be between $15,000,000 and $20,000,000.

The district court sentenced Keele to twenty-four months' imprisonment and ordered him to pay $3,691,102.70 in restitution to the victims under the Mandatory Victim Restitution Act ("MVRA").¹ Keele filed the instant appeal.

DISCUSSION

A. Whether the Appeal Waiver Precludes Appeal of the Restitution Order

Keele maintains that the appeal waiver in his plea agreement does not encompass restitution. Keele argues that the waiver did not specifically

Page 3

mention restitution and further claims that the district court, in discussing the appeal waiver at rearraignment, did not specify that he was waiving his right to appeal any restitution order. On this basis, Keele asserts that the restitution order is reviewable despite the appeal waiver contained in his plea agreement. We disagree.

This court reviews de novo whether an appeal waiver bars an appeal. United States v. Baymon, 312 F.3d 725, 727 (5th Cir. 2002).

To determine the validity of an appeal waiver, this court conducts "a two-step inquiry." United States v. Bond, 414 F.3d 542, 544 (5th Cir. 2005). Specifically, this court considers whether the waiver was knowing and voluntary and whether, under the plain language of the plea agreement, the waiver applies to the circumstances at issue. Id. In determining whether a waiver applies, this court employs ordinary principles of contract interpretation, construing waivers narrowly and against the Government. United States v. Palmer, 456 F.3d 484, 488 (5th Cir. 2006).

A defendant may waive his right to appeal as part of a valid plea agreement if the waiver is knowing and voluntary. United States v. McKinney, 406 F.3d 744, 746 (5th Cir. 2005). "A defendant must know that he had a right to appeal his sentence and that he was giving up that right." United States v. Portillo, 18 F.3d 290, 292 (5th Cir. 1994) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). A waiver is both knowing and voluntary if the defendant indicates that he read and understood the agreement and the agreement contains an "explicit, unambiguous waiver of appeal." McKinney, 406 F.3d at 746. District courts must ascertain that defendants understand provisions in plea agreements...