United States v. John Edward Stevens

This appeal challenges the trial court’s correction of an error in the sentencing of defendant Stevens. We affirm on the ground that a timely correction of an illegally imposed sentence was accomplished. (Fed.R.Crim.P. 35.)

Stevens was charged with three bank robberies in districts outside the Central District of California, and these cases were transferred to that district pursuant to Rule 20 (Fed.R.Crim.P. 20) for plea and sentencing. The plea bargain struck was an agreement that, among other things, a set of concurrent 10-year sentences would be the appropriate disposition. (See Fed.R. Crim.P. 11(e)(1)(C).) During the Rule 11 proceedings, defense counsel brought to the court’s attention that Stevens understood the agreement to be concurrent sentences of up to 10 years while counsel understood it to be concurrent straight 10-year sentences. The judge inquired into this matter, and Stevens was informed that under the terms of the agreement the court would not be able to exercise discretion to set the terms at less than 10 years. Stevens declined to reject the agreement as clarified, and the court accepted the plea agreement. When sentence was pronounced, however, the…