# United States v. Tyrone Brown

> Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit · June 30, 2011 · 436 F. App'x 208

URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/220114

## Case

- **Full name:** UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Tyrone Douglas BROWN, Defendant-Appellant; United States of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Tyrone Douglas Brown, Defendant-Appellant
- **Court:** Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
- **Decided:** June 30, 2011
- **Citations:** 436 F. App'x 208
- **Precedential status:** Unpublished
- **Opinion:** Opinion
- **Judges:** Wilkinson, King, Diaz
- **Cited by:** 1 later opinions in the Frix Law Library

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## Opinion text

UNPUBLISHED

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 10-4627

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff - Appellee,

v.

TYRONE DOUGLAS BROWN,

Defendant - Appellant.

No. 10-4790

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff - Appellee,

v.

TYRONE DOUGLAS BROWN,

Defendant - Appellant.

Appeals from the United States District Court for the District
of South Carolina, at Spartanburg. Henry F. Floyd, District
Judge. (7:09-cr-00427-HFF-2; 7:09-cr-00570-HFF-1)

Submitted: June 27, 2011 Decided: June 30, 2011

Before WILKINSON, KING, and DIAZ, Circuit Judges.
Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

Michael Chesser, Aiken, South Carolina, for Appellant. William
Jacob Watkins, Jr., OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY,
Greenville, South Carolina, for Appellee.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.

2
PER CURIAM:

Tyrone Brown pled guilty without a plea agreement, in

two separate proceedings, to use of a firearm in connection with

a crime of violence, 18 U.S.C. § 924(c) (2006); carjacking, 18

U.S.C. § 2119(1) (2006); and possession with intent to

distribute more than five grams of crack cocaine, 21 U.S.C.

§§ 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(B) (2006). The district court sentenced

Brown to 120 months of imprisonment, plus a consecutive eighty-

four-month sentence for the § 924(c) offense, for a total term

of 204 months. Brown’s attorney has filed a brief in accordance

with Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738 (1967), stating that, in

counsel’s view, there are no meritorious issues for appeal, but

questioning the adequacy of Brown’s guilty plea hearing. In

addition, Brown has filed a supplemental pro se brief in which

he asserts, first, that his sentence is unreasonable because the

sentence imposed for his § 924(c) offense should run

concurrently with the 120-month sentence. Second, Brown argues

that the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 should be applied

retroactively to his sentence. Finding no error, we affirm.

Our review of the record reveals that the district

court fully complied with the requirements of Fed. R. Crim. P.

11 in accepting Brown’s guilty pleas. Rule 11 requires the

district court to address the defendant in open court and inform

him of the following: the nature of the charge; any mandatory

3
minimum sentence and the maximum possible sentence; the

applicability of the Sentencing Guidelines; the court’s

obligation to impose a special assessment; the defendant’s right

to an attorney; his right to plead not guilty and be tried by a

jury with the assistance of counsel; his right to confront and

cross-examine witnesses; his right against self-incrimination;

and his right to testify, present evidence, and compel the

attendance of witnesses. The defendant also must be told that a

guilty plea waives any further trial and that his answers at the

proceeding may be used against him in a prosecution for perjury.

Under Rule 11(b)(2), the court must address the defendant to

determine that the plea is voluntary. The court must determine

a factual basis for the plea under Rule 11(b)(3) and require

disclosure of any plea agreement under Rule 11(c)(2). The

district court complied with each of these requirements.

Brown’s challenge to the consecutive term imposed with

respect to his § 924(c) offense is foreclosed by Abbott v.

United States, 131 S. Ct. 18, 23 (2010) (holding that a

defendant who is subject to a mandatory consecutive sentence

under § 924(c) is not spared from that sentence by virtue of

receiving a higher mandatory minimum sentence on a different

count of conviction). See also United States v. Studifin, 240

F.3d 415 (4th Cir. 2001).

4
The Fair Sentencing Act (FSA) was signed into law on

August 3, 2010, nine months after Brown was sentenced. We have

recently held that the FSA is not retroactively applicable.

United States v. Bullard, ___ F.3d ___, No. 09-5214, 2011 WL

1718894, at *9-11 (4th Cir. May 6, 2011).

In accordance with Anders, we have reviewed the record

in this case and have found no meritorious issues for appeal.

We therefore affirm Brown’s conviction and sentence. This court

requires that counsel inform Brown, in writing, of the right to

petition the Supreme Court of the United States for further

review. If Brown requests that a petition be filed, but counsel

believes that such a petition would be frivolous, then counsel

may move in this court for leave to withdraw from

representation. Counsel’s motion must state that a copy thereof

was served on Brown. We dispense with oral argument because the

facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the

materials before the court and argument would not aid the

decisional process.

AFFIRMED

5

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Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/220114. Public record. Not legal advice.
