United States v. Eric Rhine

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit

United States v. Eric Rhine

Opinion

United States Court of Appeals For the Eighth Circuit ___________________________

No. 21-1106 ___________________________

United States of America

lllllllllllllllllllllPlaintiff - Appellee

v.

Eric Allen Rhine

lllllllllllllllllllllDefendant - Appellant ____________

Appeal from United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa - Eastern ____________

Submitted: September 29, 2021 Filed: October 6, 2021 [Unpublished] ____________

Before ERICKSON, GRASZ, and STRAS, Circuit Judges. ____________

PER CURIAM.

Eric Rhine pleaded guilty to conspiring to manufacture, distribute, and possess with intent to distribute heroin. 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), 841(b)(1)(A), 846. In an Anders brief, Rhine’s counsel suggests that the district court 1 should have imposed a sentence below the mandatory minimum of 120 months under the so- called safety valve in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(f). See Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738 (1967).

Upon careful review, we conclude that the district court did not clearly err in determining that the safety-valve reduction was unavailable on these facts. See United States v. Soto, 448 F.3d 993, 995–96 (8th Cir. 2006) (reviewing the district court’s findings on the availability of a safety-valve reduction for clear error). As the court found, Rhine failed to provide complete and truthful information to investigators. See 18 U.S.C. § 3553(f)(5); see also United States v. Sanchez- Gonzalez, 643 F.3d 626, 630 (8th Cir. 2011) (stating that a district court may assess truthfulness by considering how a defendant’s statements have changed).

We have also independently reviewed the record and conclude that no other non-frivolous issues exist. See Penson v. Ohio, 488 U.S. 75, 82–83 (1988). We accordingly affirm the judgment of the district court and grant counsel permission to withdraw. ______________________________

1 The Honorable John A. Jarvey, Chief Judge, United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa.

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Reference

Status
Unpublished