[DO NOT PUBLISH]
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT FILED
________________________ U.S. COURT OF APPEALS
ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
DECEMBER 30, 2010
No. 09-12383
JOHN LEY
Non-Argument Calendar CLERK
________________________
D. C. Docket No. 08-00212-CR-ORL-18DAB
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
versus
CARLOS J. LOPEZ,
Defendant-Appellant.
________________________
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Middle District of Florida
_________________________
(December 30, 2010)
Before DUBINA, Chief Judge, CARNES and ANDERSON, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:
Appellant Carlos J. Lopez appeals pro se his multiple convictions for health
care fraud under 18 U.S.C. § 1347, making a false statement in a health care
matter under 18 U.S.C. § 1035, and aggravated identity theft under 18 U.S.C.
§ 1028(a)(1). Lopez raises several arguments on appeal, which we address below.
I.
Lopez argues that he received ineffective assistance of counsel during the
critical stage of plea bargaining. He contends that although he wanted to negotiate
with the prosecution for a plea agreement rather than go to trial, his attorney,
Clarence Counts, failed to communicate to the government Lopez’s offer of
cooperation and his desire for a plea agreement. Lopez argues that this deficient
performance prejudiced him because had Counts properly pursued plea
negotiations, Lopez would have accepted a plea deal, that would have offered
lenient treatment from the government and a lesser sentence.
We may consider an ineffective assistance claim on direct appeal “if the
record is sufficiently developed.” United States v. Patterson, 595 F.3d 1324, 1328
(11th Cir. 2010) (internal quotation marks omitted). However, “[t]he preferred
means for deciding a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel is through a 28
U.S.C. § 2255 motion ‘even if the record contains some indication of deficiencies
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in counsel’s performance.’” Id. at 1328-29. (quoting Massaro v. United States,
538 U.S. 500, 504, 123 S. Ct. 1690, 1694, 155 L. Ed. 2d 714 (2003)).
Here, we conclude that the record is insufficiently developed to decide
Lopez’s ineffective assistance claim. Both Lopez and Counts have made
conflicting statements regarding why the parties did not enter into a plea
agreement and no evidence exists as to whether the parties would have reached a
plea agreement. Accordingly, we decline to address this issue on direct appeal,
and, if he desires, Lopez should bring his ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claim
in a 28 U.S.C. § 2255 motion. See Patterson, 595 F.3d at 1328-29.
II.
Lopez argues that the district court erred in denying Counts’s motion to
withdraw and in denying the defense’s motions to substitute counsel and to
continue trial. Lopez contends that Counts could not provide zealous
representation at trial in the face of Lopez’s allegations of ineffectiveness. Lopez
also argues that he discovered Counts’s failure to negotiate with the government
only shortly before trial and that a continuance was necessary for him to negotiate
a plea agreement.
We review the district court’s denial of a motion to withdraw or to appoint
new counsel for abuse of discretion. United States v. Calderon, 127 F.3d 1314,
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1342-43 (11th Cir. 1997). The most relevant factors to be considered in this
review include: “1) the timeliness of the motion; 2) the adequacy of the court’s
inquiry into merits of the motion; and 3) whether the conflict was so great that it
resulted in a total lack of communication between the defendant and his counsel
thereby preventing an adequate defense.” Id. at 1343. Notably, “‘while the right
to select and be represented by one’s preferred attorney is comprehended by the
Sixth Amendment, the essential aim of the Amendment is to guarantee an effective
advocate for each criminal defendant rather than to ensure that a defendant will
inexorably be represented by the lawyer whom he prefers.’” Id. (quoting Wheat v.
United States, 486 U.S. 153, 159, 108 S. Ct. 1692, 1697, 100 L. Ed. 2d 140
(1988)).
We also review the district court’s denial of a motion for continuance under
an abuse-of-discretion standard. United States v. Knowles, 66 F.3d 1146, 1160
(11th Cir. 1995). In doing so, we look at “the circumstances presented, focusing
upon the reasons for the continuance offered to the trial court when the request
was denied.” Id. at 1161 (internal quotation marks omitted).
Even if the district court abuses its discretion in denying the motions, the
appellant still needs to show that he suffered prejudice as a result. United States v.
Valladares, 544 F.3d 1257, 1262 (11th Cir. 2008); Calderon, 127 F.3d at 1342-43.
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Considering the factors listed above, we conclude that the district court did
not abuse its discretion in denying the motions to withdraw, to substitute counsel,
and to continue trial. Regarding withdrawal and substitution of counsel, the
defense did not timely make the motions, the district court conducted a proper
inquiry into the merits, and the record does not evidence a total lack of
communication between Counts and Lopez. As to the motion to continue trial,
Lopez had already received several continuances, Counts assured the court that he
fully discussed everything with Lopez, and the government stated that it would
suffer severe prejudice from further delays. Confronted with these circumstances,
we conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion in deciding that
Counts could adequately represent Lopez at trial and that a further delay of the
proceedings was unwarranted.
In any event, Lopez failed to show any prejudice from the district court’s
denial of the motions. Lopez does not allege that Counts performed deficiently at
trial, and nothing indicates that the government was still willing to negotiate or
that the parties would have reached a plea agreement. Accordingly, we affirm
Lopez’s convictions.
AFFIRMED.
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