United States v. Lydia Spencer — U.S. District Court, S.D. W. Va.

Case summary

Lydia Spencer was prosecuted in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia at Charleston, No. 2:24-cr-00053, on an information charging a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1349. At a plea hearing on April 5, 2024, held on a writ of habeas corpus ad prosequendum because she was then held in the South Central Regional Jail, she waived indictment, pleaded guilty to the single-count information and was adjudged guilty; the court deferred acceptance of the plea agreement and remanded her pending sentencing. On July 25, 2024 the court accepted the plea agreement, adopted the presentence report and sentenced her to four months' custody, three years of supervised release, restitution of $36,814.13 and a $100 assessment, with no fine. The indictment in No. 2:23-cr-00118 was dismissed on the government's motion.

Case at a glance

What was Spencer sentenced to?

Four months in custody, three years of supervised release, restitution of $36,814.13 and a $100 assessment, with no fine imposed. The court stated its reasons, advised her of the right to appeal and remanded her.

What happened at the plea hearing?

The court found her competent, deferred acceptance of the plea agreement but ordered it filed, took her waiver of indictment and her account of the offense, heard the government's proffer of the factual basis, found the plea voluntary and supported by a sufficient factual basis, accepted it and adjudged her guilty. Deadlines in No. 2:23-cr-00118 were held in abeyance.

Why are there writ petitions on the docket?

Because Spencer was an unsentenced prisoner held in the South Central Regional Jail in Charleston. The United States petitioned for writs of habeas corpus ad prosequendum to secure her presence at the April 5, 2024 plea hearing and the July 25, 2024 sentencing hearing, and the court granted them.

Summary written from the documents on this page; every sentence is sourced.