United States v. Rahman Muhammed

United States Court of Appeals For the Eighth Circuit ___________________________ No. 14-3499 ___________________________ United States of America lllllllllllllllllllll Plaintiff - Appellee v. Rahman Muhammed lllllllllllllllllllll Defendant - Appellant ____________ Appeal from United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri - Kansas City ____________ Submitted: April 6, 2015 Filed: April 17, 2015 [Unpublished] ____________ Before WOLLMAN, MURPHY, and GRUENDER, Circuit Judges. ____________ PER CURIAM. Rahman Muhammed directly appeals the sentence the district court1 imposed after he pled guilty to two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm, in 1 The Honorable Howard F. Sachs, United States District Judge for the Western District of Missouri. violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2). His counsel has filed a brief under Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738 (1967), generally questioning the district court’s sentencing decision, and seeking permission to withdraw. Muhammed has filed a supplemental brief raising claims of ineffective assistance of counsel. Upon careful review, we conclude that the district court’s sentencing decision was proper. See United States v. Feemster, 572 F.3d 455, 460-61, 464 (8th Cir. 2009) (en banc) (describing appellate review of sentencing decisions). Additionally, we decline to consider Muhammed’s ineffective-assistance claims on direct appeal. See United States v. Looking Cloud, 419 F.3d 781, 788-89 (8th Cir. 2005) (appellate court generally will not consider ineffective-assistance claims on direct appeal). Finally, having independently reviewed the record pursuant to Penson v. Ohio, 488 U.S. 75 (1988), we find no nonfrivolous issues. Accordingly, we affirm, and we grant counsel leave to withdraw, subject to counsel informing Muhammed about procedures for seeking rehearing or filing a petition for certiorari. ______________________________ -2-