United States v. Vasquez

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT No. 98-40911 SUMMARY CALENDAR UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff-Appellee,

VERSUS JUAN MANUEL VASQUEZ, JR.,

Defendant-Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas (L-98-CR-104-1) June 28, 1999

Before DAVIS, DUHÉ, and PARKER, Circuit Judges.

PER CURIAM 1:

Court-appointed counsel for Juan Manuel Vasquez (“Vasquez”), having concluded that there is no meritorious basis for an appeal, has moved to withdraw as counsel on appeal and has supplemented his motion with a brief, in compliance with Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738 (1967).

Under Anders, a court-appointed attorney may withdraw if he makes a conscientious examination of the case and finds the appeal wholly frivolous. See Anders, 386 U.S. at 744. To comply with Anders, counsel must isolate "possibly important issues" and "furnish the court with references to the record and legal authorities to aid it in its appellate function." United States v. Johnson, 527 F.2d 1328, 1329 (5th Cir. 1976). After the appellant is given an opportunity to respond, the court makes a full examination of the record to determine whether the case is frivolous. See Anders, 386 U.S. at 744.

Counsel here has fully complied with the Anders requirements. Vasquez has been advised by the Court of his right to respond to counsel's motion by raising any points he contends are appealable. Vasquez failed to raise any such points. Having carefully reviewed the entire record, which includes the transcript of the guilty-plea hearing and oral plea agreement, we find no arguable merit in the appeal. Accordingly, we grant counsel's motion to withdraw and dismiss the appeal.

DISMISSED.