Court filing
Order as to Chad Brandon Thomas denying 49 Motion Release — USA v. Thomas (Dkt. 58, E.D. Tenn.)
Filed April 11, 2023 in USA v. Thomas; one of 68 filings from this case.
Record facts
| Court | U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee |
|---|---|
| Filed | 2023-04-11 |
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee · No. 2:22-cr-00076-JRG-CRW · Doc. 58 · 2023-04-11 · Docket on CourtListener
Full text
1
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE
AT GREENEVILLE
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
)
)
)
v.
)
No. 2:22-CR-76
)
CHAD BRANDON THOMAS
)
ORDER
This matter is before the Court on Defendant’s pro se Motion to Proceed Pro Se with Elbow
Counsel and to Withdraw Plea Agreement [Doc. 41], Counsel for Defendant’s Motion to Withdraw
[Doc. 48], and the Government’s Motion for Release of CJA Documents [Doc. 49]. The parties
appeared before the Court for a hearing on these Motions on April 10, 2023. Based on the
representations made by Defendant and his counsel during the hearing, and for the reasons stated
on the record, Counsel’s Motion to Withdraw [Doc. 48] is GRANTED.
Defendant represented to the Court at the hearing that he wished to proceed with counsel.
Accordingly, Defendant’s Motion [Doc. 41], to the extent he seeks to proceed pro se with elbow
counsel, is DENIED AS MOOT. The Court appoints CJA-counsel Donna Bolton, Esq., to
represent Defendant. The Court will RESERVE RULING on Defendant’s Motion [Doc. 41] with
respect to withdrawing his plea agreement.
The parties are required to attend a hearing on June 20, 2023, at 9:00 a.m. If Defendant
elects to proceed with his Motion to Withdraw Plea Agreement, the Court will hear argument on
the Motion at that time. Ms. Bolton is ORDERED to provide Defendant with copies of all relevant
documents related to his Motion to Withdraw Plea Agreement, including but not limited to the
Information [Doc. 1], Plea Agreement [Doc. 3], and Change of Plea Hearing Transcript [Doc. 50].
Case 2:22-cr-00076-JRG-CRW Document 58 Filed 04/11/23 Page 1 of 2 PageID
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However, if upon review of the record and discussion with counsel Defendant wishes to proceed
to sentencing and withdraw his Motion to Withdraw, he must notify the Court on or before May
10, 2023, and the Court will conduct his sentencing on June 20 instead. If Defendant proceeds to
sentencing, objections to the Presentence Investigation Report must be filed on or before May 16,
2023.
Additionally, the Government’s Motion for Release of CJA Documents [Doc. 49] is
DENIED. The Government seeks billing materials and invoices, namely detailed time entries,
from Defendant’s former counsel relevant to the negotiation of Defendant’s plea agreement.
Volume 7 of the Guide to Judiciary Policy, which sets forth the guidelines for administering the
CJA and related statutes, explicitly states that “[d]ocumentation submitted in support of, or
attached to, payment may not be disclosed at any time.” Guide to Judiciary Pol’y, Vol. 7 §
520.20(b)
(2022),
https://www.uscourts.gov/rules-policies/judiciary-policies/cja-
guidelines/chapter-5-ss-520-disclosure-information-payments; see also United States v. Davis,
No. 5:14-CR-240-BR, 2022 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 39735, at *10 (citing to § 520.20(b) when denying
disclosure of CJA billing records). Even if the Government was primarily seeking the fee amounts
related to former counsel’s representation, which it is not, the Court still would have to “redact
any detailed information on the payment voucher provided by defense counsel to justify the
expenses to the court.” 18 U.S.C. § 3006A(d)(4)(B)(i). Accordingly, the Court cannot disclose the
billing entries the Government seeks, and so the Government’s Motion [Doc. 49] is DENIED.
So ordered.
ENTER:
s/J. RONNIE GREER
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Case 2:22-cr-00076-JRG-CRW Document 58 Filed 04/11/23 Page 2 of 2 PageID
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