United States v. Stephen Baker

United States Court of Appeals For the Eighth Circuit ___________________________ No. 17-1549 ___________________________ United States of America lllllllllllllllllllll Plaintiff - Appellee v. Stephen Lance Baker, also known as Pudge, also known as Steve lllllllllllllllllllll Defendant - Appellant ____________ Appeal from United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas - Little Rock ____________ Submitted: November 27, 2017 Filed: December 4, 2017 [Unpublished] ____________ Before GRUENDER, BOWMAN, and BENTON, Circuit Judges. ____________ PER CURIAM. Stephen Baker appeals from the sentence the District Court1 imposed after he pleaded guilty to a drug-related offense under a plea agreement that contained an 1 The Honorable Brian S. Miller, Chief Judge, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas. appeal waiver. His counsel has moved for leave to withdraw and has filed a brief under Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738 (1967), arguing that the sentence is unreasonable. The government has moved to dismiss the appeal based on the appeal waiver. After review, we conclude that the waiver is valid, applicable, and enforceable. See United States v. Scott, 627 F.3d 702, 704 (8th Cir. 2010) (reviewing de novo the validity and applicability of an appeal waiver); United States v. Andis, 333 F.3d 886, 889–92 (8th Cir.) (en banc) (discussing enforcement of appeal waivers), cert. denied, 540 U.S. 997 (2003). We have independently reviewed the record under Penson v. Ohio, 488 U.S. 75 (1988), and we find no nonfrivolous issues outside the scope of the appeal waiver. Accordingly, we grant the government’s motion to dismiss this appeal based on the appeal waiver, and we grant counsel’s motion to withdraw. ______________________________ -2-