Opinion
5:21-cr-584
04-28-2023
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, PLAINTIFF, v. JESSIE LEE, DEFENDANT.
ORDER
HONORABLE SARA LIOI UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
This matter is before the Court upon Magistrate Judge Thomas M. Parker's Report and Recommendation that the Court ACCEPT the plea of guilty of defendant Jessie Lee and enter a finding of guilty against defendant. (Doc. No. 411.)
On August 11, 2021, the government filed an Indictment against defendant. (Doc. No. 1.) On March 22, 2023, this Court issued an order assigning this case to Magistrate Judge Parker for the purpose of receiving defendant's guilty plea. (Doc. No. 396.)
On March 31, 2023, a hearing was held in which defendant entered a plea of guilty, as follows: to Counts 1, 3, 4, 5, and 20 of the Indictment, charging him with the following:
• Count 1, charging him with Racketeering Conspiracy, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Section 1962(d);
• Count 3, charging him with Possession with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance, in violation of 21 U.S.C. Sections 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(C);
• Count 4, charging him with Possession of Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Section 924(c)(1)(A)(i);
• Count 5, charging him with Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute and Distribution of Cocaine, Cocaine Base and Fentanyl, in violation of 21 U.S.C. Sections 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(C), and 846; and
• Count 20, charging him with Distribution of a Controlled Substance, in violation of 21 U.S.C. Sections 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(C).
Magistrate Judge Parker received defendant's guilty plea and issued a Report and Recommendation ("R&R") recommending that this Court accept the plea and enter a finding of guilty. (Doc. No. 411.) Neither party objected to the Magistrate Judge's R&R in the fourteen days after it was issued.
Upon de novo review of the record, the Magistrate Judge's R&R is ADOPTED. Specifically, the Court finds as follows: that the defendant is competent to enter a plea, that he understands his constitutional rights, that he is aware of the consequences of entering a plea, and that there is an adequate factual basis for the plea. The Court further finds that the plea was entered knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily. Accordingly, the defendant's plea of guilty is APPROVED.
Therefore, the defendant is adjudged guilty of Counts 1, 3, 4, 5, and 20 of the indictment The sentencing will be held on July 21, 2023 at 1:00 p.m.
IT IS SO ORDERED.