Order regarding magistrate judge's report and recommendation — No. 1:23-cr-00091 (Dkt. 30, N.D. Iowa)

Summary

An order regarding the magistrate judge's report and recommendation concerning the defendant's guilty plea in United States v. Alhaji Kundu Aly, No. 23-CR-91 CJW-MAR, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa, filed July 1, 2024 as Document 30; the signature block names Chief Judge C.J. Williams. It recites that a two-count Indictment was filed on December 12, 2023 and that on June 14, 2024 the defendant pleaded guilty to count one before United States Magistrate Judge Mark A. Roberts, who recommended the plea be accepted. The parties filed no objections and a waiver of objections, so the court reviews for clear error under 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(A). The court states that it appears upon review that the findings are not clearly erroneous, and it accepts the plea of guilty to count one of the Indictment.

Summary drafted by a model from the text of the original file linked on this page and checked by script against that text before publication. It is a navigation aid, not a reading of what the document proves. Where AI is used

Full text

                   IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
                   FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF IOWA
                          CEDAR RAPIDS DIVISION

 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,                            No. 23-CR-91 CJW-MAR
                Plaintiff,
 vs.                                 ORDER REGARDING MAGISTRATE
                                           JUDGE’S REPORT AND
 ALHAJI KUNDU ALY,
                                            RECOMMENDATION
           Defendant.                  CONCERNING DEFENDANT’S
                                               GUILTY PLEA
                      __________________________

                   I.        INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND
       On December 12, 2023, a two-count Indictment was filed against defendant. On
June 14, 2024, defendant appeared before United States Magistrate Judge Mark A.
Roberts and entered a plea of guilty to count one of the Indictment. On June 14, 2024,
Judge Roberts filed a Report and Recommendation (“R&R”) in which he recommended
defendant’s guilty plea be accepted. The parties did not file objections to Judge Roberts’
R&R and did file a Waiver of Objections to Report and Recommendation Concerning
Guilty Plea. The Court, therefore, undertakes the necessary review of Judge Roberts’
recommendation to accept defendant’s plea in this case.
                                   II.    ANALYSIS
       Under the statute, this Court’s standard of review for a magistrate judge’s R&R is
as follows:
       A judge of the court shall make a de novo determination of those portions
       of the report or specified proposed findings or recommendations to which
       objection is made. A judge of the court may accept, reject, or modify, in
       whole or in part, the findings or recommendations made by the magistrate
       judge.

28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(C).
       When parties do not object to a magistrate judge’s report and recommendation,
the Court reviews the report and recommendation for clear error.           28 U.S.C. §

       Case 1:23-cr-00091-CJW-MAR Document 30 Filed 07/01/24 Page 1 of 2
636(b)(1)(A). Similarly, Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 59(b) provides for review
of a magistrate judge’s R&R on dispositive motions, where objections are made, as
follows:
       The district judge must consider de novo any objection to the magistrate
       judge’s recommendation. The district judge may accept, reject, or modify
       the recommendation, receive further evidence, or resubmit the matter to the
       magistrate judge with instructions.

FED. R. CRIM. P. 59(b)(3).1
       In this case, the parties filed no objections, and it appears to the Court upon review
that Judge Roberts’ findings and conclusions are not clearly erroneous. Therefore, the
Court ACCEPTS Judge Roberts’ R&R of June 14, 2024, and ACCEPTS defendant’s
plea of guilty in this case to count one of the Indictment.
       IT IS SO ORDERED this 1st day of July, 2024.



                                          _________________________
                                          C.J. Williams, Chief Judge
                                          United States District Court
                                          Northern District of Iowa




1
   United States v. Cortez-Hernandez, 673 F. App’x 587, 590-91 (8th Cir. 2016) (per curiam),
suggests that a defendant may have the right to de novo review of a magistrate judge’s
recommendation to accept a plea of guilty even if no objection is filed.



                                             2

      Case 1:23-cr-00091-CJW-MAR Document 30 Filed 07/01/24 Page 2 of 2


File and source

File

30-order-regarding-magistrate-judge-s-report-and-recommendation.pdf

Size

76,349 bytes

SHA-256

4e5d3e92f994077c185668f5f3f232c79dbdd8c387d856893ccf71814ce9ed51

Our copy

30-order-regarding-magistrate-judge-s-report-and-recommendation.pdf

Original

archive.org