United States v. Kee ( 2000 )

UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 99-4686
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
versus
CHARLES KEE,
Defendant - Appellant.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western Dis-
trict of North Carolina, at Shelby. Lacy H. Thornburg, District
Judge. (CR-96-53)
Submitted: November 30, 2000 Decided: December 7, 2000
Before NIEMEYER, LUTTIG, and MICHAEL, Circuit Judges.
Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
A. James Siemens, Asheville, North Carolina, for Appellant. Mark
T. Calloway, United States Attorney, Brian Lee Whisler, Assistant
United States Attorney, Charlotte, North Carolina, for Appellee.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
Local Rule 36(c).
PER CURIAM:
Charles Kee appeals his convictions and sentence for con-
spiracy to manufacture, distribute, or possess with intent to dis-
tribute cocaine and cocaine base and possession with intent to
distribute cocaine base in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841, 846
(1994). Finding no reversible error, we affirm.
On appeal, Kee contends that the Supreme Court’s recent
decision in Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U.S. ___, 120 S.Ct. 2348(2000), requires that his conviction and sentence be vacated.
Because Kee’s sentence of 148 months does not exceed the twenty-
year statutory maximum set out in 21 U.S.C.A. § 841(b)(1)(C) (West
1999) for the core offense without enhancement for drug quantity,
we find that his sentence is permissible under Apprendi. United
States v. Angle, Nos. 96-4662/4672, 99-4187, 2000 WL 1515159, *10
(4th Cir. Oct. 12, 2000); United States v. Aguayo-Delgado, 220 F.3d
926, 933 (8th Cir. 2000).
Accordingly, we affirm Kee’s convictions and sentence. 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
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