UNITED STATES v. GAINER (2021)

United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit.

UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Alphonse GAINER, a.k.a. Daddy Black, a.k.a. Phillip L. Black, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 20-13642

Decided: April 27, 2021

Before JORDAN, GRANT and LUCK, Circuit Judges. Robert G. Davies, U.S. Attorney Service - Northern District of Florida, U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Florida, Pensacola, FL, for Plaintiff-Appellee Alphonse Gainer, Pro Se

Michael Ufferman, appointed counsel for Alphonse Gainer in this appeal of the denial of a federal prisoner's motion for sentence reduction under the First Step Act of 2018, Pub. L. No. 115-391, § 404, 132 Stat. 5194, 522 (“First Step Act”), has moved to withdraw from further representation of the appellant and filed a brief pursuant to Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738, 87 S.Ct. 1396, 18 L.Ed.2d 493 (1967). Our independent review of the entire record reveals that counsel's assessment of the relative merit of the appeal is correct. Because independent examination of the entire record reveals no arguable issues of merit, counsel's motion to withdraw is GRANTED, and the district court's denial of Gainer's motion for a sentence reduction pursuant to the First Step Act is AFFIRMED.

PER CURIAM: