United States v. Lantigua-Bonilla, 1st Cir. (1996)
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Scribd Government DocsUnited States v. Lantigua-Bonilla, 1st Cir. (1996)
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Scribd Government DocsUSCA1 Opinion
United States Court of Appeals
For the First Circuit
____________________
No. 95-1824
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Appellee,
v.
RIGOBERTO LANTIGUA-BONILLA,
Defendant, Appellant.
____________________
APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF PUERTO RICO
[Hon. Carmen Consuelo Cerezo, U.S. District Judge]
___________________
____________________
Before
Torruella, Chief Judge,
___________
Coffin, Senior Circuit Judge,
____________________
and Cyr, Circuit Judge.
_____________
____________________
Peter John Porrata for appellant.
__________________
Epifanio Morales-Cruz,
______________________
with whom
Guillermo Gil,
_____________
Quiles Espinosa, Senior
________________
Assistant
United
United States
States Attorney,
Litigation Counsel,
appellee.
____________________
Attorney,
and Jose A.
________
were on
brief for
May 20, 1996
___________________
Per Curiam.
__________
Defendant-appellant
Rigoberto Lantigua-Bonilla
seeks return on constitutional
to
the
government
as part
appellant is a fugitive
of
his
appeal.
sentence,
we
grounds of some $80,000 forfeited
of
his
plea
agreement.
who has failed to comply
exercise our
Because
with the terms
discretion
to
dismiss his
See Ortega-Rodriguez v. United States, 113 S. Ct. 1199,
___ ________________
_____________
1203
(1993); Molinaro v. New Jersey, 396 U.S. 365, 365-66 (1970)
________
__________
(per
___
curiam); United States v. Puzzanghera, 820 F.2d 25, 26 (1st
______
_____________
___________
Cir. 1987).
The relevant facts are as follows.
At our request following
oral argument, the government submitted affidavits
circumstances of
reported
that the
appellant to
appellant's fugitive status.
These statements
Metropolitan Detention Center
the custody
of the Immigration
detailing the
(MDC) released
and Naturalization
Service
(INS) on July 25,
confinement
1995, upon completion
in the case now on appeal.
had not
received notification
pending
-- scheduled
case.
of his term of
MDC officials apparently
that sentencing of
for August
31 --
in a
appellant was
separate criminal
The INS released him on August 18.
On August 31, 1995, after appellant failed to appear for the
sentencing and his
know
his
appellant's
notified the
his
client's
arrest.
attorney advised
whereabouts,
On May
warrant
1, 1996, the
district court that
supervised release
the court that
not
issued
for
U.S. Probation Office
appellant was in
conditions in
this case,
that another warrant be issued for his arrest.
-2-
was
he did
violation of
and requested
This case differs somewhat from prior cases in which we have
dismissed an
appeal based on
an appellant's escape
the
time of his erroneous release,
the
full term
of imprisonment
appellant already had served
imposed in
And, his escape before sentencing
the case
Ct. at 1209
on appeal.
in the separate criminal
does not provide a basis for dismissing this appeal.
Rodriguez, 113 S.
_________
because, at
(appellate sanction of
case
See Ortega___ _______
dismissal
justified only if
the
(1st
there is a "connection between
fugitivity and
appellate process"); United States v. Anagnos, 853 F.2d 1, 2
_____________
_______
Cir.
1988)
(absconding
before sentencing
should
affect
consequences in the district court, not the appeals court).
Appellant has
not, however, completed his
case, which in addition
term
of
to the prison term, included
supervised release,
a fine
of
of $75.
He has paid
paid the
as noted
above, has
supervised
release
restraints
placed
Puzzanghera,
___________
terms.
upon
Appellant
him
pursuant
a two-year
$10,000 and
monetary assessment
fine and,
sentence in this
the $75, but
not complied
thus
to
a special
has not
with the
has "flouted
the
`the
conviction,'"
820 F.2d at 27 (quoting Molinaro, 396 U.S. at 366),
________
and is in our view equally "disentitled" to call on the resources
of the
appeals court, id. at
___
26, as a defendant
avoid further custody.
Accordingly, this appeal is dismissed.
_________
-3-
who escapes to
