United States v. Nicholas Wukoson ( 2020 )


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  •            Case: 19-11825   Date Filed: 01/10/2020   Page: 1 of 20
    [DO NOT PUBLISH]
    IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
    FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
    ________________________
    No. 19-11825
    Non-Argument Calendar
    ________________________
    D.C. Docket No. 9:18-cr-80166-DMM-1
    UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
    Plaintiff-Appellee,
    versus
    NICHOLAS WUKOSON,
    Defendant-Appellant.
    ________________________
    Appeal from the United States District Court
    for the Southern District of Florida
    ________________________
    (January 10, 2020)
    Before GRANT, TJOFLAT and FAY, Circuit Judges.
    PER CURIAM:
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    Nicholas Wukoson appeals his 96-month total prison sentence for 6 counts
    of possession of child pornography involving a prepubescent minor and 1 count of
    witness tampering. We affirm.
    I. BACKGROUND
    In 2017, a Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) agent discovered and
    downloaded multiple images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of
    prepubescent children, under age twelve, from a computer using a torrent program
    to upload files to other users. An administrative subpoena confirmed that the
    suspect computer was at an internet address corresponding to Wukoson’s home
    address. The FBI executed a search warrant at Wukoson’s house and recovered
    two laptop computers that Wukoson admitted belonged to him. After examining
    the laptops, the FBI uncovered several videos and images of confirmed child
    pornography and evidence of hundreds more videos and images of suspected child
    pornography. Wukoson admitted that he was responsible for downloading the
    child pornography on the two laptops; however, after the search warrant was
    executed, Wukoson told his 13-year-old son, J.W., to take responsibility for the
    child pornography because he would only get a “slap on the wrist.” When the FBI
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    formally interviewed J.W., he told agents that, “it could have been me,” regarding
    the child pornography on Wukoson’s laptops.1
    In a superseding indictment, a grand jury charged Wukoson with six counts
    of possession of child pornography involving a prepubescent minor, in violation of
    
    18 U.S.C. § 2252
    (a)(4)(B), (b)(2) (Counts 1-6), and one count of witness
    tampering, in violation of 
    18 U.S.C. § 1512
    (c)(2) (Count 7). Wukoson executed a
    plea agreement with the government in which he committed to plead guilty to
    Counts 1-7 in return for the government’s promise to recommend a sentence of no
    more than 4 years of imprisonment. The plea agreement provided that Wukoson’s
    sentence would be imposed by the district court after it considered the Sentencing
    Guidelines, the district court could impose a sentence above or below the advisory
    guideline range, the district court was permitted to tailor the ultimate sentence in
    light of other statutory concerns, the district court possessed the authority to
    impose any sentence within and up to the statutory maximum, and Wukoson would
    not be able to withdraw his guilty plea as a result of the sentence that the district
    court imposed. Wukoson agreed to waive his appeal rights, with certain
    exceptions.
    1
    In conjunction with his plea agreement, Wukoson executed a written factual proffer setting
    forth these undisputed facts.
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    The plea agreement reserved the government’s right to inform the court of
    “all facts pertinent to the sentencing process, including all relevant information
    concerning the offenses committed, whether charged or not, as well as concerning
    [Wukoson] and [Wukoson’s] background.” The agreement also reserved the
    government’s right to make any recommendation as to the quality and quantity of
    punishment, subject only to the express terms contained in the agreement.
    The district court conducted a plea colloquy. Wukoson stated that he read
    and discussed the plea agreement with his counsel before signing it, he understood
    that the district court was obligated to calculate a guideline range according to the
    Sentencing Guidelines and the court had some discretion to vary up or down from
    the guideline range, he understood that the district court could sentence him up to
    the maximum penalty authorized by law, and he could not withdraw his plea as a
    result of the sentence imposed. While reviewing the provisions of the plea
    agreement, the district court stated, “Paragraph five contains an unusual provision,
    particularly since I usually follow plea agreements. The Government has agreed to
    recommend that in terms of imprisonment, you be sentenced to no more than four
    years imprisonment.” Wukoson stated that he talked to his lawyer and understood
    that, as part of the plea agreement, he was giving up his right to appeal the
    sentence unless it exceeded the maximum permitted by statute or the court
    declined to follow the joint sentencing recommendation of 4 years of
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    imprisonment. Wukoson agreed with the facts contained in the plea agreement,
    confirmed that the child pornography was his and not J.W.’s, and pled guilty.
    At the end of the plea hearing, the district court stated, “I’m not going to
    criticize the Government on the four-year -- you made your decision for the
    reasons. I mean the guidelines were, in the PSI for one count, . . . 97 to something
    months, so it is going to be hard . . . to get below the four years.” The district court
    stated that it would follow the recommendation, although it was sure that “an
    unusual set of circumstances led to it.”
    A probation officer submitted a presentence investigation report (“PSI”) and
    calculated a total offense level of 31 and a criminal category of I, with a resulting
    guideline imprisonment range of 108-135 months.2 The statutory maximum term
    of imprisonment was 20 years for each of the 7 counts.
    Wukoson filed objections to the PSI and urged the district court to sentence
    him “at or below” 4 years of imprisonment pursuant to the parties’ plea agreement.
    He also attached letters of support from family and friends that urged the court to
    show leniency in sentencing. The government, in response, filed a series of letters
    2
    The PSI applied a base offense level of 18, under U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(a)(1); a 2-level increase for
    possessing material depicting a minor under the age of 12, under § 2G2.2(b)(2); a 4-level
    increase for possessing material that portrays sadistic or masochistic conduct or other depictions
    of violence, under § 2G2.2(b)(4)(A); a 2-level increase because the offense involved the use of a
    computer, under § 2G2.2(b)(6); a 5-level increase because the offense involved 600 or more
    images of child pornography, under § 2G2.2(b)(7)(D); a 2-level increase for obstructing justice,
    under § 3C1.1; and a 2-level decrease for acceptance of responsibility, under § 3E1.1(a).
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    from other relatives and acquaintances that highlighted the pain and anguish that
    Wukoson had caused.
    At sentencing, Wukoson stated he had no objections to the PSI’s
    computation of the guideline range but contested the inclusion of a criminal charge
    against him that was later dismissed by the state of Florida. The district court
    agreed to add a paragraph to the PSI that Wukoson denied the allegations. The
    court found that Wukoson’s total offense level was 31, his criminal history
    category was I, and the advisory guideline range was 108-135 months of
    imprisonment.
    The government stated that its recommendation was 4 years of
    imprisonment and detailed why it chose to agree to that recommendation. The
    government stated that when the parties negotiated a plea agreement right before
    trial, 4 years of imprisonment was what Wukoson requested as part of his
    agreement to plead guilty. The government began prepping Wukoson’s son for
    trial in anticipation that Wukoson would argue that J.W. was the one responsible
    for the child pornography found on his computer. The government was worried
    that testifying in front of his father and other family might do irreparable harm to
    J.W.; for that reason, the government wanted to resolve the case without going to
    trial and agreed to recommend a term of 4 years of imprisonment. The government
    highlighted that child pornography was endemic in this country and that law
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    enforcement is doing what it can to combat the problem. The government
    additionally noted that the FBI, in investigating this case, connected to Wukoson’s
    computer more than 23 times to download child pornography. The government
    stated that if this case went to trial, it would have presented evidence that Wukoson
    was at home when the child pornography was downloaded and that Wukoson’s son
    was elsewhere. The government also stated that J.W. told his mother that he lied
    to the FBI because Wukoson told him to lie.
    When the district court asked the government why it allowed Wukoson to
    withdraw an earlier plea, the government explained that it was because it had
    neglected to disclose a recorded interview with Wukoson’s son and it felt the most
    ethical way to handle the situation was to allow Wukoson to withdraw his guilty
    plea. The government confirmed that a PSI was prepared after Wukoson pled
    guilty the first time and the resulting guideline range was 97-121 months of
    imprisonment. The district court then said, “Well, I’m not criticizing you for the
    position you took. I mean, I would not have allowed him to withdraw his plea, as I
    think I have said before.” The court stated that when a defendant admits guilt
    under oath in a plea colloquy, it expects to be able to rely on that. The court then
    asked the government, “Isn’t [Wukoson] benefiting by what he did? I mean, how
    do you escape the conclusion that by trying to withdraw his plea and then blaming
    his son that he has not -- if I follow your agreement, that he hadn’t benefitted?”
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    The government stated that it could not argue against that and confirmed that its
    position was that it entered into the plea agreement because it wanted to spare J.W.
    the trauma of testifying.
    The government stated that when it argues at a sentencing hearing for a child
    pornography crime, it considers the children in the videos and images who are
    being raped and sodomized and thinks about who is standing up for them. The
    government argued that it did not want the court to think that the government did
    not think that child pornography was a serious crime.
    Karyn Wukoson, Wukoson’s wife, addressed the court and stated that she
    was worried for J.W., because of Wukoson’s betrayal, as well as for their five-
    year-old daughter because she was the same age as some of the girls in the child
    pornography on his computer; she asked the court to consider the maximum
    punishment with supervised release to hold Wukoson responsible for his actions.
    David Crow, Karyn Wukoson’s friend, addressed the court and stated that he
    did not believe that Wukoson was a good husband or father and he saw Wukoson
    physically and verbally assault Karyn. After the search warrant was executed,
    Wukoson told Crow that he hoped J.W. was not involved; Wukoson shortly
    thereafter told Crow that J.W. had confessed. When the FBI interviewed Crow,
    they told him that Wukoson said that Crow had slept at his house recently and
    could have been involved since he worked with computers. Crow denied
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    Wukoson’s allegations and told the FBI agents that Wukoson told him that J.W.
    had confessed the night before. Crow asked the court to sentence Wukoson to a
    minimum of 13 years because that was how long it would take for his daughter to
    turn 18 years of age.
    Leah Trietiak, J.W.’s mother, addressed the court and read a letter from
    J.W., which stated that Wukoson was in jail because of his own actions, Wukoson
    tried to blame him and others to protect himself, and he could not forgive
    Wukoson. Trietiak also read a letter from her 19-year-old daughter, who wrote
    that Wukoson was angry about the criminal allegations he faced when she was
    younger, Wukoson tried to turn J.W. against Trietiak and her parents by telling
    J.W. they were bad people, and in the last year J.W. became withdrawn and
    unhappy. Trietiak then stated that Wukoson blamed Karyn’s father and brother
    and then told J.W. to take the blame for his actions. Wukoson was accused of
    abusing Trietiak’s daughter 15 years ago; however, the charges were dropped
    because Trietiak defended him.
    Wukoson then stated that he was not going to get into Trietiak’s statements
    about the 15-year-old allegations, but he disputed her assertions. Wukoson argued
    that the video of J.W.’s interview and J.W.’s change in position would have
    created reasonable doubt if this case had gone to trial. Wukoson argued that Crow
    repaired Wukoson’s computers in the past, which also could have raised
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    reasonable doubt in a trial. Wukoson asked the court to accept the
    recommendation in the plea agreement, because no one, especially Wukoson,
    wanted J.W. to go through a trial. Wukoson argued that the recommended
    sentence was reasonable in light of the circumstances in this case. The district
    court stated that it understood Wukoson’s argument but asked whether Wukoson
    created the reasonable doubt by blaming J.W. and Crow. Wukoson responded that
    he had accepted responsibility. The court pointed out that Wukoson had accepted
    responsibility in his first plea agreement and colloquy and that the court was still
    getting letters from Wukoson’s family saying Wukoson did not commit the crime.
    Wukoson stated that it was not him saying that and those people just could not
    believe he had committed the crime.
    Wukoson’s mother, sister, and close friend also addressed the district court
    on behalf of Wukoson, urging the court to show leniency. Wukoson then
    addressed the court for allocution, stating that he took responsibility for his actions
    and that he had made mistakes and was owning up to them. The district court
    asked Wukoson what he meant by that because so far Wukoson had only said he
    was sorry about what had happened to other people and had not said anything
    showing the court that he understood what he had done. The court stated, “That’s
    the problem I have with this. You seem like you are still persisting in this, you
    know, it is everybody else's fault and I didn't do anything wrong.” Wukoson stated
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    that he did not blame anyone else and he was sorry about what he had done and
    how it had affected his friends and family.
    The district court then stated it had considered all the statements from the
    parties, the PSI, the advisory guideline range, the 
    18 U.S.C. § 3553
     factors, and the
    plea agreement. The court noted that Wukoson had pled guilty twice, and the first
    time Wukoson pled guilty the guideline range was 97-121 months of
    imprisonment. The court stated that now, on the eve of trial, Wukoson pled guilty
    again, saying that he takes responsibility for these actions. The court stated that, in
    considering the § 3553 factors, child pornography has a tremendous impact on the
    victims and that the reason sentences are strict is to try to remove the demand for
    child pornography. The court said that when considering Wukoson’s personal
    characteristics, the court believed that Wukoson refused to acknowledge what he
    had done and, even though he said he was sorry, still appeared to blame other
    people. The court noted that it had never seen a father try to blame his son for his
    crime and it had a difficult time with that aspect of this case because family
    members were usually trying to take the blame for another family member.
    The district court stated that it was troubled because Wukoson’s witness
    tampering, in part, forced the government to agree to this plea deal. The court
    noted that while it usually followed plea agreements, it was not bound to do so.
    The court recognized that Wukoson’s appellate waiver applied only if the court
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    followed the sentencing recommendation, but the court did not believe 4 years of
    imprisonment was a just sentence under the circumstances of this case and it would
    not follow the plea agreement for those reasons.
    The district court stated it would go below the guideline range because of the
    parties’ efforts to resolve the case and sentenced Wukoson to 96 months of
    imprisonment, consisting of concurrent terms of 96 months as to all 7 counts, and
    15 years of supervised release. Wukoson objected, stating that he “reserv[ed] all
    written and oral objections that the Court has mentioned and that [he] raised with
    regard to the recommended sentence not being accepted by the Court.”
    On appeal, Wukoson argues that the government breached its plea
    agreement, which required the government to recommend a 4-year sentence, by
    presenting extensive argument and testimony that sabotaged the recommendation.
    II. DISCUSSION
    Generally, we review de novo whether the government has breached a plea
    agreement. United States v. Hunter, 
    835 F.3d 1320
    , 1324 (11th Cir. 2016).
    However, if a defendant failed to raise the issue before the district court, then the
    issue is reviewed only for plain error. United States v. De La Garza, 
    516 F.3d 1266
    , 1269 (11th Cir. 2008). Under plain error review, the defendant must show
    that an error occurred, the error was plain, the error affected substantial rights, and
    the failure to correct the error would seriously affect the fairness of the judicial
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    proceeding. 
    Id.
     For an error to affect substantial rights, the defendant generally
    must show that it affected the outcome of the district court proceedings. Id.; see
    also Puckett v. United States, 
    556 U.S. 129
    , 142 n.4, 
    129 S. Ct. 1423
    , 1433 n.4
    (2009). If it is unclear whether the government’s breach affected the defendant’s
    sentence, then the defendant has not shown plain error. De La Garza, 
    516 F.3d at 1270-71
    . Automatic reversal is appropriate only when a breach of the plea
    agreement was established and an objection to the government’s breach of a plea
    agreement was preserved at the district court. Hunter, 835 F.3d at 1329.
    A plea agreement is analyzed according to the defendant’s reasonable
    understanding in executing the plea agreement. United States v. Rewis, 
    969 F.2d 985
    , 988 (11th Cir. 1992). To determine whether the government breached a plea
    agreement, the court must determine the scope of the government’s promises.
    United States v. Copeland, 
    381 F.3d 1101
    , 1105 (11th Cir. 2004). Implied
    obligations not agreed to by the parties will not be inferred. See United States v.
    Benchimol, 
    471 U.S. 453
    , 455, 
    105 S. Ct. 2103
    , 2105 (1985) (“[O]ur view of Rule
    11(e) is that it speaks in terms of what the parties in fact agree to, and does not
    suggest that . . . implied-in-law terms [be] read into [a plea] agreement.”).
    There is no limitation placed upon the information that a district court may
    receive for sentencing purposes concerning the background, character, and conduct
    of a person convicted of a federal offense. 
    18 U.S.C. § 3661
    . The Supreme Court
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    has noted that, at sentencing, a district court has broad discretion to consider “the
    fullest information possible concerning the defendant’s life and characteristics.”
    Pepper v. United States, 
    562 U.S. 476
    , 480, 
    131 S. Ct. 1229
    , 1235 (2011) (quoting
    Williams v. New York, 
    337 U.S. 241
    , 247, 
    69 S. Ct. 1079
    , 1083 (1949)). When
    imposing a sentence, the district court must consider the factors set out in 
    18 U.S.C. § 3553
    (a).
    Wukoson’s argument that he is entitled to automatic reversal is based on
    cases where defendants preserved their objections in the district court and their
    claims were therefore subject to de novo review on appeal. See Hunter, 835 F.3d
    at 1329 (“Since we conclude that the government breached the plea agreement and
    Hunter preserved his objection to that breach, reversal is required.”); see also
    United States v. Taylor, 
    77 F.3d 368
    , 370-71 (11th Cir. 1996) (applying the
    standard in Santobello v. New York, 
    404 U.S. 257
    , 262-63, 
    92 S. Ct. 495
    , 499
    (1971), where the defendant objected in the district court to the government’s
    breach of the plea agreement and was therefore entitled to de novo review); United
    States v. Grandinetti, 
    564 F.2d 723
    , 727 (5th Cir. 1977) (also applying the standard
    set in Santobello, 
    404 U.S. at 262-63
    , 
    92 S. Ct. at 499
    ). However, Wukoson did
    not preserve his claim because he never objected that the government violated its
    obligations and never argued, nor asked the district court to rule on whether, the
    government had breached the plea agreement. See De La Garza, 
    516 F.3d at 1269
    .
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    Wukoson objected below to the district court not following the sentence
    recommendation but argues on appeal only that the government erred in breaching
    the plea agreement. While he preserved any previous objections at the conclusion
    of the sentencing hearing, the only objection Wukoson made at sentencing was to
    the inclusion of a previous offense in the PSI. Accordingly, Wukoson’s claim is
    subject to plain error review. See 
    id.
    Wukoson fails to show there was plain error. The government was not
    required to enthusiastically recommend a 4-year sentence. See Benchimol, 
    471 U.S. at 455-57
    , 
    105 S. Ct. at 2105
    . The plea agreement required that the
    government recommend a sentence of no more than 4 years of imprisonment; it did
    not expressly require the government to “advocate” for a 4-year sentence on
    Wukoson’s behalf. See 
    id.,
     
    105 S. Ct. at 2105
    . The government met this promise
    by stating its recommendation for a 4-year sentence at sentencing. Unlike in
    Rewis, where the government was permitted to comment only on facts relevant to
    the current offense, the government in Wukoson’s plea agreement expressly
    reserved the right to inform the court of “all facts pertinent to the sentencing
    process, including all relevant information concerning the offenses committed,
    whether charged or not, as well as concerning [Wukoson] and [Wukoson’s]
    background.” See Rewis, 
    969 F.2d 985
    . Further, the plea agreement alerted
    Wukoson, and Wukoson testified at his plea colloquy that he understood, that the
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    district court was required to calculate and consider his guideline range and could
    impose a sentence of up to 20 years of imprisonment.
    Furthermore, the government’s conduct at the sentencing hearing was not a
    plain breach of the plea agreement. First, the government’s presentation of
    witnesses at the sentencing hearing was a proper exercise of the rights reserved to
    it in the plea agreement. See United States v. Horsfall, 
    552 F.3d 1275
    , 1283 (11th
    Cir. 2008) (holding that the government’s presentation of victim impact evidence
    did not breach the government’s agreement not to recommend an upward departure
    from the Guidelines because the government had reserved the right to present such
    evidence and did not recommend an upward departure). Nothing in the plea
    agreement prohibited the government from presenting information that was
    relevant to the § 3553 factors, including the history and characteristics of the
    defendant as described by others. See 
    18 U.S.C. § 3553
    . The government in
    Wukoson’s case, like the prosecutor in Levy, expressly recommended the agreed-
    upon sentence, and while it presented witnesses, it did not elicit or endorse their
    statements or their recommendations for a higher sentence. See United States v.
    Levy, 
    374 F.3d 1023
    , 1032 (11th Cir. 2004), vacated and remanded on other
    grounds, 
    545 U.S. 1101
    , 
    125 S. Ct. 2542
     (2005). The witnesses were not parties to
    the plea agreement and, therefore, were not bound by the agreement to recommend
    a sentence of 4 years. The witnesses’ statements at the hearing were consistent
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    with their letters, which were already part of the record, and addressed the
    characteristics of Wukoson and the nature of the offense.
    Second, it is not plain that the government’s explanation of why it agreed to
    recommend a 4-year sentence breached the plea agreement. While Wukoson
    asserts that the government undermined its sentencing recommendation by
    claiming that it was forced to enter the plea agreement because of Wukoson’s
    witness tampering, this argument fails under our precedent. See 
    id.
     (concluding
    that the government did not breach the plea agreement when the prosecutor was
    apologetic and implied it was forced to recommend the sentence by “grudgingly”
    making the recommendation). Additionally, the government’s emphasis of the
    circumstances behind the plea in response to the district court’s question of why
    the government executed the plea agreement was not plain error because a district
    court may inquire into the circumstances behind a recommended sentence to aid it
    in exercising its sentencing discretion. See Grandinetti, 
    564 F.2d at 726
    .
    Third, it is not plain that the government’s arguments at sentencing breached
    the plea agreement because those arguments did not expressly conflict with the
    government’s promises. Wukoson’s reliance on other cases is again misplaced.
    While the prosecutor in Grandinetti made a “grudging” statement that the
    government was required to adhere to the plea agreement, the prosecutor
    effectively argued against the agreement when he stated it was illegal and therefore
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    breached the defendant’s reasonable understanding that the government had agreed
    to make a “forceful and intelligent” sentencing recommendation. See 
    id. at 725, 726-27
    . In contrast, Wukoson’s plea agreement required the government only to
    recommend a sentence of 4 years of imprisonment. While the government’s
    explanation of why it executed the plea agreement, its discussion about the
    seriousness of child pornography, and its presentation of witnesses may have
    implicitly undermined its sentencing recommendation, the government never made
    an express statement that the sentence was improper.
    The government’s conduct was also distinguishable from Taylor, where the
    government argued in support of the PSI’s higher recommended guideline range in
    response to the defendant's objection, which expressly conflicted with the
    government’s promise to recommend a 10-year sentence. See Taylor, 
    77 F.3d at 369
    . Here, the government and Wukoson agreed with the guideline range
    presented in the PSI, and while Wukoson objected to the inclusion of an alleged
    offense in the PSI, the objection did not affect the guideline range. Even though
    Trietiak made statements regarding the alleged offense, the allegations were
    already in the PSI, and as discussed above, the government did not elicit or endorse
    her statement. The government’s argument regarding the seriousness of child
    pornography is also distinguishable from the government’s conduct in Taylor. The
    government here was arguably contrasting its general position on child
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    pornography with this specific case, stating that its recommendation was “limited
    to this case on these facts and to no other,” and its express sentencing
    recommendation was not simply paying “lip service” to the terms of the plea
    agreement. See 
    id. at 370-71
    .
    In any event, even if the government plainly breached the plea agreement, he
    must show that the breach affected his substantial rights. De La Garza, 
    516 F.3d at 1269
    . Wukoson cannot show that any breach of the plea agreement affected his
    substantial rights because the record suggests that the district court would not have
    imposed the recommended sentence absent the breach. See Puckett, 
    556 U.S. at
    142 n.4, 
    129 S. Ct. at
    1433 n.4 (“When the rights acquired by the defendant relate
    to sentencing, the ‘“outcome”’ he must show to have been affected is his
    sentence.”). The record does not support Wukoson’s argument that the district
    court changed its mind about following the sentence recommendation only after
    hearing the government’s argument and witnesses at sentencing. At the plea
    hearing, the district court expressed several reservations with the sentencing
    recommendation. While the district court indicated that it would follow the
    recommendation, it also stated at the end of the plea hearing that it was “pretty
    offensive” for Wukoson to plead guilty and then blame his son, it did not see that
    there had been much acceptance by Wukoson, and Wukoson’s actions “were really
    offensive from start to finish.”
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    The district court’s statements at sentencing focused on conduct by
    Wukoson that would have been in the record through the presentence investigation
    report and factual proffer even if the government had not said a word. Moreover,
    after explaining its reasoning for not following the recommended sentence, the
    district court still sentenced Wukoson below the guideline range because of the
    parties’ efforts to resolve the case. Accordingly, Wukoson failed to show that the
    government’s breach of the plea agreement, if any, affected his substantial rights.
    AFFIRMED.
    20