United States v. Christen Clark

── United States v. Christen Clark ── Court: Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit Date: April 16, 2026 Category: General RECOMMENDED FOR PUBLICATION Pursuant to Sixth Circuit I.O.P. 32.1(b) File Name: 26a0115p.06 UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT ┐ UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, │ Plaintiff-Appellee, │ > No. 24-4068 │ v. │ │ CHRISTEN L. CLARK, │ Defendant-Appellant. │ ┘ Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio at Akron. No. 5:23-cr-00354-1—Patricia A. Gaughan, District Judge. Argued: October 22, 2025 Decided and Filed: April 16, 2026 Before: STRANCH, BUSH, and DAVIS, Circuit Judges. _________________ COUNSEL ARGUED: Wendy R. Calaway, LAW OFFICE OF WENDY R. CALAWAY, CO., L.P.A., Cincinnati, Ohio, for Appellant. Brenna L. Fasko, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY’S OFFICE, Cleveland, Ohio, for Appellee. ON BRIEF: Wendy R. Calaway, LAW OFFICE OF WENDY R. CALAWAY, CO., L.P.A., Cincinnati, Ohio, for Appellant. Laura McMullen Ford, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY’S OFFICE, Cleveland, Ohio, for Appellee. _________________ OPINION _________________ JANE B. STRANCH, Circuit Judge. Christen Clark was charged with six counts related to drug trafficking cocaine, fentanyl, and methamphetamine and also firearm possession. He pled guilty to all six counts while represented by Owen Kalis, who withdrew from the practice of  No. 24-4068 United States v. Clark Page 2 law eleven days later due to pending disciplinary action. See In re Resignation of Kalis, 236 N.E.3d 263, 264 (Ohio 2024); Ohio S. Ct. R. Gov. Bar VI, § 11(A)–(C). Clark subsequently moved to withdraw his guilty plea, arguing that his plea was not knowing, voluntary, and intelligent due to ineffective assistance of counsel. The district court held that there was not a “fair and just” reason for withdrawal under Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 11(d)(2)(B) and that the court’s plea colloquy rendered the plea sufficient under the Due Process Clause. Clark timely appealed. For the reasons set forth below, we VACATE the district court’s denial of Clark’s motion to withdraw his guilty plea and REMAND the case for the district court to hold an evidentiary hearing on Clark’s claims. I. BACKGROUND A. Factual Background Investigators searched Clark’s residence pursuant to a federal search warrant issued after he sold controlled substances several times to a confidential informant. The search recovered cocaine, fentanyl, methamphetamine, firearms, and a very large amount of cash. Clark was indicted in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio and charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, methamphetamine, and fentanyl (Count 1); possession with intent to distribute cocaine, fentanyl, and methamphetamine (Counts 2–4); possessing a firearm and ammunition as a felon (Count 5); and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug tracking offense (Count 6). In this case, Clark had four different attorneys in the span of a year. On July 6, 2023, the distr