United States v. Lawson , 155 F. App'x 99 ( 2005 )

UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 05-4014
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
versus
RICHARD LAWSON,
Defendant - Appellant.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern
District of West Virginia, at Parkersburg. Joseph Robert Goodwin,
District Judge. (CR-03-177)
Submitted: October 21, 2005 Decided: December 12, 2005
Before WILLIAMS, MICHAEL, and MOTZ, Circuit Judges.
Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
George J. Cosenza, COSENZA & MERRIMAN, PLLC, Parkersburg, West
Virginia, for Appellant. Kasey Warner, United States Attorney,
Joshua C. Hanks, Assistant United States Attorney, Charleston, West
Virginia, for Appellee.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
See Local Rule 36(c).
PER CURIAM:
Richard Lawson was found guilty by a jury on February 25,
2004, of possessing a firearm as a convicted felon in violation of
18 U.S.C. § 922(g) (2000) (Count 1), and attempting to manufacture
methamphetamine in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 846 (2000) (Count 3).
Lawson was present for the first day of his trial on February 24,
2004, but absconded thereafter and has remained at large since.
Lawson was sentenced in absentia to 262 months of imprisonment for
Count 1 and to 240 months concurrently for Count 3. Lawson’s
attorney timely filed an appeal. For the reasons that follow, we
dismiss.
Although we have jurisdiction to consider the appeal,
Molinaro v. New Jersey, 396 U.S. 365, 366 (1970), we find that
Lawson’s escape status during the pendency of his appeal
“‘disentitles the defendant to call upon the resources of the Court
for determination of his claims.’” Ortega-Rodriguez v. United
States, 507 U.S. 234, 240 (1993) (quoting Molinaro, 396 U.S. at
366). Accordingly, we dismiss the appeal. 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.
DISMISSED
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