最高法院新判例落地第五巡回：量刑错误不能推翻上诉弃权，冰毒案犯20年刑期上诉被驳回
美国联邦第五巡回上诉法院10月29日公布意见（案号25-60017），在最高法院发回重审后维持原判：被告人在认罪协议中放弃上诉的，不因地区法院的量刑错误而失效。法院据此执行上诉弃权，驳回了冰毒案犯 Rashon Jermaine Harris 的上诉，他240个月（20年）的刑期维持不变。
Harris 此前在密西西比南区联邦法院就持有冰毒意图分销认罪，被判240个月监禁。他随后就量刑加重因素（包括逃避执法造成重大危险的加重）提出上诉；政府主张其认罪时已放弃上诉权。三人小组先前同意政府立场驳回上诉，最高法院随后将案件发回，要求结合其 Hunter 案（608 U.S.）的判决重新审理。
由法官 Stephen A. Higginson 撰写的意见引用 Hunter 案指出：「量刑是一件复杂的事，其间发生错误不幸但不可避免。这类标准性的量刑法律适用错误，不能取消上诉弃权。」意见认为，即便本案逃逸加重的事实认定较为单薄，也不构成「司法不公」，弃权应予执行，上诉驳回。
Fifth Circuit Applies Supreme Court's Hunter Ruling: Sentencing Errors Do Not Void Appeal Waiver, Meth Appeal Dismissed
On remand from the Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held on October 29 (No. 25-60017) that a defendant's appeal waiver is not undone by ordinary sentencing errors. Enforcing the waiver, the court dismissed the appeal of Rashon Jermaine Harris, leaving his 240-month (20-year) sentence intact.
Harris had pleaded guilty in the Southern District of Mississippi to possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute and was sentenced to 240 months. He appealed the application of sentencing enhancements, including one for recklessly creating a substantial risk of death while fleeing law enforcement; the government argued he had waived his right to appeal in his plea agreement. A panel initially agreed and dismissed, and the Supreme Court sent the case back for reconsideration in light of its decision in Hunter, 608 U.S.
Writing for the court, Judge Stephen A. Higginson quoted Hunter: "Sentencing is a complex affair . . . in which it is unfortunate but inevitable that mistakes will occur. Such standard-fare errors in misapplying sentencing law cannot cancel an appeal waiver." The court found no miscarriage of justice on this record and dismissed the appeal.
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：图：密西西比州 Hattiesburg 的法院大楼。CC BY-SA 3.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / A courthouse in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
