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Gov't Cannot Unilaterally Conclude Plea Agreement Breached to Justify Arguing for Higher Sentence

By Shari Allison

United States v. Cudjoe, ___ F.3d ___, 2008 WL 2893130 (10th Cir. 2008)Government breached ?the spirit and the letter? of the plea agreement in which it promised that it would stand mute, though would not support, any request by Defendant for a 30 year sentence. The agreement was relatively complicated in its dos and don?ts: the government retained the right to argue for a higher Guideline range, for application of specific Guideline enhancers, and retained the right to argue for and present evidence in support of additional Guideline adjustments and sentencing factors. It further reserved the right to change its position if new information came to light. Finally, the deal was off if Defendant said anything or took a position that was not factually accurate...continue to full post

Full post as published by Tenth Circuit Blog on July 30, 2008 (boomark / email).