Background
Michael Bond pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm as a convicted felon under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1). The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri sentenced him to 110 months in prison.
Bond appealed. His appointed counsel filed an Anders brief suggesting that the sentence was substantively unreasonable, while indicating that counsel believed the appeal presented no meritorious issues.
The Court’s Holding
The Eighth Circuit dismissed the appeal because an enforceable appeal waiver covered Bond’s challenge to the substantive reasonableness of his sentence. The court concluded that the issue fell within the waiver’s scope and found no basis for declining to enforce it under the narrow miscarriage-of-justice exception.
After independently reviewing the record as required in an Anders proceeding, the court also found no other nonfrivolous issues for appeal. It therefore granted counsel permission to withdraw.
Key Takeaways
- A valid appeal waiver barred Bond’s substantive-reasonableness challenge to his 110-month sentence.
- The miscarriage-of-justice exception to enforcement of an appeal waiver is narrow and did not apply here.
- The court’s independent Anders review uncovered no other nonfrivolous appellate issues.
Why It Matters
The decision reinforces that the Eighth Circuit will enforce a knowing and voluntary appeal waiver when the appellate claim falls within its scope, absent the exceptional circumstances required by the miscarriage-of-justice doctrine.
It also illustrates the court’s procedure in an Anders appeal: even when a waiver forecloses the issue identified by counsel, the panel independently reviews the record before dismissing the appeal and permitting counsel to withdraw.