Home > Research Legal Advice > Criminal Defense > Can you appeal a judge's sentencing outcome in a federal fraud case?
Asked 5 months ago - Clovis, CA
FlagIn a change of plea, can you appeal a judge's decision of incarceration vs probation? This is a federal case.
Yes, you may appeal any Sentence imposed by a federal judge, however, since the Judge has great latitude in rendering a sentence (even with the federal guidelines in place) it is unlikely to be overturned in most instances - unless it is really an aberration.
Check with a local federal defense attorney.
Good luck.
If you entered into a written guilty plea, you may have waived certain rights to appeal including the right to appeal your sentence. If there is no written plea agreement you can probably appeal. As the other posters have indicated, it is an uphill battle as judges are given broad discretion regarding sentencing.
If your change of plea occurred because of a plea agreement and your case arose in the Eastern District of California, chances are you have waived your right to appeal the conviction and sentence. Such waivers are standard in most of the plea agreements I have seen in this district. Assuming you did waive your right to appeal, you still can appeal an illegal sentence, which, in my experience, is a rare thing. Federal judges are usually quite clear on the record when it comes to justifying a particular sentence. Good luck.
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