United States v. Shanks, No. 18-3628 (7th Cir. 2020)
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While on supervised release for a drug crime, Shanks was charged in a drug-distribution conspiracy that led to overdoses that resulted in a death and serious bodily injury. At an arraignment, defense counsel reported that Shanks pled not guilty and understood the charges. When the government filed a superseding indictment, Shanks refused to enter a plea; challenged the court’s jurisdiction, denied understanding the charges, and refused to talk with counsel. Shanks did not appear in court again. The judge issued an order for Shanks to appear at trial. Shanks refused to accept service. The judge, counsel, and a court reporter began the trial outside Shanks’s jail cell. Shanks denied understanding whatever was said or refused to answer, despite repeated explanations. The judge found that by “disruptive conduct” Shanks had waived his right to attend. To avoid harm to Shanks or others, the judge did not use force but told Shanks that, if he changed his mind, the marshals would transport him. Outside of the jury’s presence, the judge regularly asked whether Shanks had changed his mind. The judge instructed the jury not to draw any inference from Shanks’s absence.
Shanks was sentenced to multiple life terms. The Seventh Circuit affirmed, rejecting arguments that the court did not comply with Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 43, which (he claimed) requires a defendant’s presence in a courtroom at the start of the trial and that the court clearly erred in finding that he knowingly and voluntarily waived his right to attend.
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