UNITED STATES v. LAWSON (2020)

[Unpublished]

Marquette Lawson appeals his sentence in a criminal case in which he pleaded guilty to failing to register as a sex offender. At sentencing, the district court ¹ granted the government's motion for an upward departure under U.S.S.G. § 4A1.3(a), and imposed a sentence within the resulting advisory sentencing guideline range. Lawson's counsel has moved to withdraw, and has filed a brief under Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738, 87 S.Ct. 1396, 18 L.Ed.2d 493 (1967), challenging the substantive reasonableness of the sentence.

After carefully reviewing the record, we conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion by imposing a sentence within the advisory range. There is no indication that the court overlooked a relevant factor, gave significant weight to an improper or irrelevant factor, or committed a clear error of judgment in weighing relevant factors. See United States v. Feemster, 572 F.3d 455, 461-62 (8th Cir. 2009) (en banc); see also United States v. Jones, 639 F.3d 484, 488 (8th Cir. 2011).

Having independently reviewed the record under Penson v. Ohio, 488 U.S. 75, 109 S.Ct. 346, 102 L.Ed.2d 300 (1988), we find no nonfrivolous issues for appeal. The judgment of the district court is affirmed, and we grant counsel's motion to withdraw. See 8th Cir. R. 47B.

FOOTNOTES

1.   The Honorable C.J. Williams, United States District Judge for the Northern District of Iowa.

PER CURIAM.