United States v. Darius Gordon Thompson

Pursuant to a negotiated plea bargain, Thompson pleaded guilty to distribution of a controlled substance in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841 (a)(1). The prosecutor recommended a sentence of six months but the district judge imposed a sentence of four years. Thompson appeals from a denial of a motion to set aside or, in the alternative, to modify the sentence.

Thompson contends that the district judge failed to impose the recommended sentence because he was misinformed that Thompson had not cooperated with Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents pursuant to the plea bargain. Thus he raises two issues on appeal: first, whether it was error to base the sentence on an alleged lack of cooperation without providing him an opportunity to rebut the charge; and second, whether it was error for the sentencing judge not to state in open court the factors relied upon in setting the length of the sentence imposed. We affirm.

Thompson’s trial was continued to give him an opportunity to cooperate with DEA agents. Later, when Thompson entered his guilty plea, he signed a form which states that the sentence is “solely a matter within the control of the Judge” and that he is “prepared…