Aaron Lee Smiley v. United States
HabeasCorpus
I. Does a plea agreement need to pass constitutional muster before it waives a person's right to challenge on appeal the forfeiture of his or her home?
II. While a majority of circuits allow forfeiture of a house in a plea agreement, will the Supreme Court of the United States stand with the minority who require plea agreements to be unequivocally unambiguous in their forfeiture clauses?
III. Whether a defendant can briskly and broadly waive away his constitutional rights by signing a plea agreement especially when there is evidence that the plea was signed under coercion and without the trial court inquiring about the coercion?
IV. Whether the Court of Appeals erred in relying on United States v. Faults, 821 F.3d 502, 507-08 (4th Cir. 2016) and dismissing Appellant's claims of ineffective assistance of counsel without a proper review in light of the overwhelming evidence of Appellant's trial attorney failing to conduct as a reasonably competent attorney and prejudice his client?
Does a plea agreement need to pass constitutional muster before it waives a person's right to challenge on appeal the forfeiture of his or her home?