Opinion
CR-S-20-32-02 WBS
07-27-2021
THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff, v. JONTE SCOTT, Defendant.
MICHAEL D. LONG (CA State Bar #149475) Attorney for JONTE SCOTT
MICHAEL D. LONG (CA State Bar #149475)
Attorney for JONTE SCOTT
APPLICATION FOR TRANSPORTATION TO SENTENCING HEARING; ORDER FOR TRANSPORTATION 18 USC §4285
WILLIAM B. SHUBB UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Defendant JONTE SCOTT, by and through his attorney, Michael D. Long, hereby requests the court to order the United States Marshal to pay for his transportation from his home in Florida to Sacramento, California, for the purpose of attending his sentencing hearing in person.
On April 26, 2021, defendant Jonte Scott was released from custody, pursuant to a court order. An investigator drove him straight to the airport. Mr. Scott flew home to Tampa, Florida, using a one-way ticket purchased by friends and family members. Mr. Scott is indigent. In late April of 2021, he filled out and filed a financial affidavit explaining his financial circumstances, including that he has been unemployed since 2019. Mr. Scott will not be able to borrow enough money to fly to Sacramento for our August 9, 2021, sentencing hearing in District Court.
Application is hereby made for an Order for Transportation and subsistence allowance for defendant Jonte Scott to travel from his home in Tampa, Florida, to Sacramento, California for the purpose of attending the August 9, 2021, sentencing hearing. Counsel is requesting that Mr. Scott fly to Sacramento on Friday, August 6 or Saturday, August 7, 2021, and subsistence expenses while traveling to Sacramento, so he can work with undersigned counsel in person to prepare for sentencing.
Counsel is further requesting that the Court order the United States Marshal to pay for lodging for Mr. Scott from Friday, August 6, 2021, through Monday, August 9, 2021, [the day of sentencing] as well as subsistence expenses while in Sacramento for that same time period.
Counsel is aware of the limits in the language of 18 USC §4285, and that the statute is commonly read to only authorize the Court to order the United States Marshal pay for an indigent defendant's transportation to the district where the court is located and subsistence payments only for the date of travel. (See U.S. v Mendoza, 734 F.Supp.2d 281 (2010).) Accordingly, counsel for defendant Jonte Scott makes the alternative request that the Court order CJA re-imbursement for hotel and subsistence expenses for Friday, August 6, 2021, through Monday, August 9, 2021, with undersigned counsel paying these expenses out of his pocket and then requesting reimbursement from CJA funds.
A hearing is not requested for this application.
ORDER FOR TRANSPORTATION, LODGING AND SUBSISTENCE 18 USC §4285
The court sees no reason why defendant must travel to Sacramento as early as Friday, August 6, 2021, to attend a hearing on Monday, August 9, 2021. The court sees no reason defendant cannot travel to Sacramento the day before the hearing. Counsel may confer with his client by telephone or video conference at any time before that. Therefore, for the purpose of defendant Jonte Scott attending his August 9, 2021, sentencing hearing in the Eastern District of California, at Sacramento:
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the United States Marshal pay for transportation for defendant JONTE SCOTT from Tampa, Florida, to Sacramento, California, on August 8, 2021, and for subsistence expenses for that date.
IT IS HEREBY FURTHER ORDERED that the United States Marshal pay for a hotel room for Jonte Scott for the night of Sunday, August 8, 2021.
The court finds that Mr. Scott is indigent and financially unable to pay for travel to Sacramento, California. Whether he will need to return to Florida after sentencing, and whether he will need subsistence expenses for the date of sentencing, will depend upon whether he is ordered remanded to the custody of the Marshal or allowed to self-report to the institution. This order is authorized pursuant to 18 U.S.C. §4285.