United States v. Sevilla-Oyola

Appellant pleaded guilty to two counts related to his involvement in a drug ring. After a plea colloquy, the district judge sentenced Appellant to 327 months on count one and life imprisonment on count two, to run consecutively. Thereafter, the district judge twice resentenced Appellant. Before the First Circuit, Appellant argued that the judge lacked authority for actions taken after entry of the first sentence and that flaws in the initial plea colloquy warranted vacation of the first judgment. The First Circuit originally affirmed the initial guilty plea and original sentence. The Court subsequently granted the petition for panel rehearing and withdrew its previous opinion on the matter. The First Circuit ultimately vacated all judgments and orders of the district court, holding (1) the district judge lacked the authority to modify the original sentence, and therefore, the amended judgment and all of the judge’s subsequent actions were null and void; and (2) because Appellant did not appreciate that he faced the risk that the initial punishment would be reinstated by the Court, the Court simply vacated the original sentence and remanded for resentencing. View "United States v. Sevilla-Oyola" on Justia Law