United States v. Michael Cottrell

MEMORANDUM

Michael Cottrell pleaded guilty to one count of unarmed bank robbery in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2113 (a) and now appeals the forty-six-month sentence imposed by the district court. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 and affirm the sentence.

Cottrell elected to represent himself during the sentencing proceedings and submitted three sets of objections to the presentence investigation report (PSR). Many of these objections related to the allegedly-inaccurate narrative descriptions of his prior criminal convictions. Cottrell requested copies of the police reports that had been used to compile the PSR. His aim was to demonstrate the inaccuracies that he perceived, but the district court denied that request. Cottrell also objected to the limitations he faced, as an in-custody defendant, on access to legal phone calls, photocopies, the law library, and other legal materials.

Cottrell first argues that the performance of his advisory attorney violated Cottrell’s Sixth Amendment right to the effective assistance of counsel by not procuring the police reports for Cottrell. Ineffective assistance claims are generally not reviewed on direct appeal because they…