United States v. Fears, No. 22-1934 (7th Cir. 2023)
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Fears was charged with conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, 18 U.S.C. 1594(c), and four counts of sex trafficking, 1591(a), (b)(1). The 1591(b)(1) counts carry 15-year mandatory minimums. Fears pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy and one count of trafficking under 1591(a), (b)(2), which carries a 10-year mandatory minimum. Fears admitted to the factual bases of the charges. The plea agreement included a broad appellate waiver; Fears could only attack his conviction on the basis of “involuntariness or ineffective assistance of counsel” and seek to reduce his sentence if there were changes to the applicable law. Over two years after Fears pleaded guilty, but before he was sentenced, he filed pro se motions to withdraw his plea, claiming his guilty plea was not "knowing and voluntary" because of ineffective assistance of counsel. He claimed that his attorney pressured him to plead guilty.
The district court rejected his motions, noting the plea colloquy “where Fears affirmed, time and again,” that he understood the charges and potential sentence; that his attorneys explained the charges and answered all his questions; that he had no complaints about his representation; and that he had not accepted responsibility. The Seventh Circuit dismissed Fears’ appeal from his 30-year sentence, citing the plea waiver. Consideration for the agreement “abounds.”
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