Orange
County, California (September 2018) – On September 10, 2018, The Orange County
Register published a detailed analysis of the case of Corvain Cooper, whose
only hope to ever get released from prison is a clemency grant by President
Trump or a review by the U.S. Supreme Court. While such dire prospects would
indicate that the most violent crimes are involved, Cooper’s offenses are non-violent
marijuana offenses. But he had two prior offenses, which resulted in the
application of the “three strikes law.”
The
Orange County Register article was researched and written by journalist Brooke
Edwards Staggs, who is a general assignment reporter with a focus on covering
the politics, business, health and culture of cannabis. For this article,
Staggs interviewed the mother of Corvain Cooper, other family members, and
Cooper’s attorney, Orlando-based Criminal Defense Lawyer Patrick Megaro. Patrick Megaro has represented Cooper pro bono
since 2014. Megaro has ceaselessly pursued justice for Cooper, but now it is
down to two options – President Trump or the U.S. Supreme Court.
The article quotes
Megaro: “I’m just hoping that somebody, somewhere — whether that’s in the White
House or across the street at the Supreme Court — sees that this particular
sentence is complete madness.”
The article then
summarizes the appeals that Patrick Megaro has initiated on Cooper’s behalf:
“Megaro appealed
Cooper’s case to the U.S. Supreme Court, but in 2016 the justices declined to
hear it. Still, two decisions made by California voters while Cooper has been
in prison serve to give Megaro and Cooper hope. First, in 2014, voters approved
Proposition 47, reducing many drug crimes to misdemeanors. Under that new law,
Cooper’s conviction for possession of cough syrup with codeine was downgraded
from a felony to a misdemeanor. Then, in November 2016, voters approved
Proposition 64. In addition to legalizing the recreational use of cannabis, the
measure reduced or eliminated nearly every marijuana-related crime.
And in May 2017, Cooper’s felony marijuana charge from 2009 was reduced to a
misdemeanor. Earlier this year, Megaro went back to federal appeals court in
North Carolina and explained that Cooper’s two prior felonies were no longer
strikes. But they refused to reconsider his sentence. In July, Megaro filed a
new petition with the Supreme Court. And, last month, they got one
bit of potentially encouraging news, when Solicitor General Noel Francisco
requested more time to submit the government’s response to Cooper’s petition. … As they wait to hear back from the
Supreme Court, Megaro is also appealing Cooper’s case to the White House — for
the second time.”
It all began when Corvain Cooper was charged
in the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina
with conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute 1,000
kilograms or more of marijuana, and conspiracy to commit money laundering and
structuring transactions. A special information was also filed against Cooper,
alleging two prior felony convictions for possession of drugs (one for
marijuana, one for codeine cough syrup) in the California state courts. The
filing triggered a mandatory life sentence without parole. The reason for the unusually harsh sentence
is the so-called “Three Strikes” law. These laws require
a person guilty of committing a drug felony and
two other previous drug felony convictions to serve a mandatory life
sentence in prison. The “Three
Strikes” law significantly increases the prison
sentences of persons convicted of a felony who
have been previously convicted of two or more violent crimes or drug felonies,
and limits the ability of these offenders to receive a punishment other than
a life sentence.
Background
The underlying
court cases are United States v. Cooper, 624 Fed.Appx. 819 (4th Cir. 2015), and
United States v. Cooper, 714 Fed.Appx. 259 (4th Cir. 2018). According to a
press release of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, “from
in or about 2004 through January 2013, Cooper was involved in a drug conspiracy
that trafficked marijuana from California to the Charlotte area. Court records
show that Cooper was charged with conspiracy to distribute and to possess with
intent to distribute at least one thousand kilograms of marijuana as well as
money laundering conspiracy and structuring financial transactions through
banking institutions to avoid IRS reporting requirements. Cooper, along with
two co-defendants, Evelyn LaChapelle and Natalia Wade, were convicted of all
charges on October 18, 2013, following a three-day trial.” He was sentenced to
life in prison on June 18, 2014. See https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdnc/pr/california-drug-trafficker-sentenced-life-prison-drug-conspiracy-and-related-charges
The Orange
County Register article is available online at https://www.ocregister.com/2018/09/10/this-man-will-spend-life-in-prison-for-a-marijuana-conviction-unless-donald-trump-or-the-supreme-court-helps-him/
A Wikipedia article on Three-Strikes Law is at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-strikes_law
A online petition urging the President to grant Corvain Cooper clemency and release him from prison is at https://www.change.org/p/donald-trump-release-corvain-cooper-from-life-imprisonment-without-parole-for-marijuana
About Patrick Megaro
Patrick Michael Megaro is an attorney at
Halscott Megaro PA. His primary areas of practice are criminal defense,
criminal appeals, post-conviction relief, civil appeals, and civil rights
litigation.
The Megaro Criminal Law Library:
https://themegarocriminallawlibrary.com/
Linkedin Profile:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrick-michael-megaro-%E2%AD%90-877b284/
Attorney Profile:
https://solomonlawguild.com/patrick-michael-megaro
**** Patrick Michael Megaro is a partner at Halscott Megaro PA. His primary areas of practice are criminal defense, criminal appeals, post-conviction relief, civil appeals, and civil rights litigation. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/patrickmichael.megaro.9 - Attorney Profile: https://criminal-defense-attorney.squarespace.com/patrick-michael-megaro-esq/ - Attorney Profile at: https://solomonlawguild.com/patrick-michael-megaro; Attorney News at: https://attorneygazette.com/patrick-megaro%2C-esq#ab17a387-a757-4c0f-bc37-81f556fd15ea
