USA v. Gary Finklea, No. 11-13376 (11th Cir. 2012)

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[DO NOT PUBLISH] IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT FILED U.S. COURT OF APPEALS ________________________ ELEVENTH CIRCUIT JANUARY 12, 2012 JOHN LEY CLERK No. 11-13376 Non-Argument Calendar ________________________ D.C. Docket No. 9:11-cr-80005-KLR-1 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee, versus GARY L. FINKLEA, Defendant-Appellant. ________________________ Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida ________________________ (January 12, 2012) Before WILSON, PRYOR and BLACK, Circuit Judges. PER CURIAM: Gary Finklea appeals his sentence of 180 months of imprisonment following his plea of guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1). Finklea argues that the district court violated his rights under the Fifth and Sixth Amendments by sentencing him as a career criminal based on prior convictions that were neither charged in his indictment nor admitted by him. Finklea s argument is foreclosed by Almendarez-Torres v. United States, 523 U.S. 224, 226 27, 118 S. Ct. 1219, 1222 (1998), and Finklea acknowledges that we are bound to follow Almendarez-Torres unless and until the Supreme Court itself overrules that decision. United States v. Thomas, 242 F.3d 1028, 1035 (11th Cir. 2001). We AFFIRM Finklea s sentence. 2

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