United States v. Cipkin

── United States v. Cipkin ── Court: Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Date: June 04, 2026 Category: Direct Criminal Case: 25-30518 Document: 48-1 Page: 1 Date Filed: 06/04/2026 United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit United States Court of Appeals ____________ Fifth Circuit FILED No. 25-30518 June 4, 2026 Summary Calendar Lyle W. Cayce ____________ Clerk United States of America, Plaintiff—Appellee, versus Stephen Andrew Cipkin, Defendant—Appellant. ______________________________ Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana USDC No. 1:23-CR-254-1 ______________________________ Before Jones, Duncan, and Douglas, Circuit Judges. Per Curiam: * Stephen Andrew Cipkin appeals the sentence imposed upon his guilty plea conviction for two counts of enticing a minor to engage in sexual activity. He argues, without citation to authority, that the district court committed plain error by allowing counsel to withdraw his objections to the presentence report—thereby conceding that a guidelines range of life imprisonment _____________________ * This opinion is not designated for publication. See 5th Cir. R. 47.5. Case: 25-30518 Document: 48-1 Page: 2 Date Filed: 06/04/2026 No. 25-30518 applied—without ensuring that he understood the consequences of doing so. Because we have not previously addressed the issue Cipkin raises, the district court’s failure to give the desired admonishment was not plainly erroneous. See United States v. Evans, 587 F.3d 667, 671 (5th Cir. 2009). AFFIRMED. 2