Reported / Citable
Background
The district court referred the administration of Tevin Trevauyon Sells’s guilty plea to U.S. Magistrate Judge Christine L. Stetson under Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 11. After conducting a Rule 11 hearing, Judge Stetson issued findings of fact and recommended that the district court accept the plea.
Judge Stetson also recommended adjudging Sells guilty on Count One of the indictment, which charged him under 18 U.S.C. § 922(n) with illegally receiving a firearm while under indictment. Neither party objected to the magistrate judge’s findings and recommendation.
The Court’s Holding
U.S. District Judge Marcia A. Crone adopted the magistrate judge’s findings of fact and recommendation. The court accepted Sells’s guilty plea.
Consistent with the plea and the adopted recommendation, the court adjudged Sells guilty on Count One of the indictment for violating 18 U.S.C. § 922(n).
Key Takeaways
- The district court adopted the magistrate judge’s unopposed findings and recommendation concerning Sells’s guilty plea.
- The court accepted the plea after the magistrate judge conducted the required Rule 11 hearing.
- Sells was adjudged guilty of illegally receiving a firearm while under indictment in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(n).
Why It Matters
The order formally accepts Sells’s guilty plea and adjudicates him guilty on Count One. It also illustrates the procedure by which a district judge may refer a plea hearing to a magistrate judge and then adopt the resulting findings and recommendation when no party objects.