Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure Violation – Rule 43

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7^th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: United States of America v. David L. Shanks, Jr.,

Case No.: 18-3628

Officials: KANNE, SYKES, and BRENNAN, Circuit Judges.

Focus: Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure Violation – Rule 43

David L. Shanks, Jr. did not attend his trial for drug-distribution offenses, for which a jury found him guilty and the district court entered a judgment of conviction.

Shanks challenges the judgment on two bases. First, he contends that the district court did not comply with Rule 43 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, which he argues requires a defendant’s presence in a courtroom at the start of trial. Shanks’s trial began before the judge and counsel at a jail, not in a courtroom. Second, he argues that the court clearly erred in finding that, through his disruptive conduct, he knowingly and voluntarily waived his right to attend trial. Because the district court permissibly began trial at the jail and reasonably found that Shanks waived his right to attend the remainder of his trial, we affirm.

Affirmed

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Derek A Hawkins is trademark corporate counsel for Harley-Davidson. Hawkins oversees the prosecution and maintenance of the Harley-Davidson’s international trademark portfolio in emerging markets.