United States v. Morales , 71 F. App'x 398 ( 2003 )


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  •                                                        United States Court of Appeals
    Fifth Circuit
    F I L E D
    IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
    FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT                 August 20, 2003
    Charles R. Fulbruge III
    Clerk
    No. 02-31081
    Conference Calendar
    UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
    Plaintiff-Appellee,
    versus
    PIERO ANGELO MORALES,
    Defendant-Appellant.
    --------------------
    Appeal from the United States District Court
    for the Eastern District of Louisiana
    USDC No. 02-CR-139-3-A
    --------------------
    Before JONES, WIENER, and BENAVIDES, Circuit Judges.
    PER CURIAM:*
    Piero Angelo Morales pleaded guilty, pursuant to a written
    plea agreement, to one count of distribution of cocaine and
    ecstasy.   The district court sentenced him to 115 months in
    prison and a five-year term of supervised release.     Morales now
    appeals the district court’s judgment.   Morales argues that he
    was denied the effective assistance of counsel in litigating his
    involuntariness claim during sentencing.
    *
    Pursuant to 5TH CIR. R. 47.5, the court has determined
    that this opinion should not be published and is not precedent
    except under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH CIR.
    R. 47.5.4.
    No. 02-31081
    -2-
    As a general rule, this court declines to review claims of
    ineffective assistance of counsel on direct appeal, although we
    may do so in exceptional cases.   See United States v. Higdon, 
    832 F.2d 312
    , 314 (5th Cir. 1987); United States v. Gibson, 
    55 F.3d 173
    , 179 (5th Cir. 1995); see also Massaro v. United States, 
    123 S. Ct. 1690
     (2003).   This is not the exceptional case.
    Accordingly, we decline to review Morales’ ineffective-assistance
    claim in this direct appeal.   The judgment of the district court
    is AFFIRMED.
    

Document Info

Docket Number: 02-31081

Citation Numbers: 71 F. App'x 398

Judges: Benavides, Jones, Per Curiam, Wiener

Filed Date: 8/19/2003

Precedential Status: Non-Precedential

Modified Date: 10/18/2024