USA v. PATEL et al

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
MACON DIVISION
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 	:
: 	Case No. 5:26-cr-7 (MTT)
v. 	:
:
MIHIR PATEL, 	:
:
Defendant 	:
_________________________________ :
ORDER REGARDING SELF-REPRESENTATION
On September 30, 3026, Defendant Mihir Patel filed a motion to terminate his
retained counsel and requested the appointment of counsel. (Doc. 68). At a hearing on
October 9, 2026, Defendant represented to the Court that he intended to proceed without
counsel, representing himself. The Court conducted an inquiry pursuant to Faretta v.
California, 422 U.S. 806 (1975). The Court advised the Defendant of the charges against
him, 	the 	advantages 	of 	being 	represented 	by 	a 	lawyer, 	and 	the 	disadvantages 	of
self-representation. 	The Court inquired into the Defendant’s background, training,
education and mental state. 	Defendant was provided with a written notice of the dangers
and disadvantages of self-representation. A copy of that notice is attached to this Order as
an exhibit. The Court went through each of the questions and statements in the notice and
confirmed that Defendant was aware of the dangers of self-representation. Finally, the
Court advised Defendant that a trained lawyer would be able to represent him better than he
could represent himself and that it was unwise to try to represent himself. At the conclusion
of the colloquy, Defendant confirmed that he intended to proceed representing himself.
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Based on Defendant’s responses to this colloquy, the Court hereby finds that the
Defendant has knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily waived the Constitutional right to
counsel 	and 	likewise 	has 	knowingly, 	intelligently 	and 	voluntarily 	invoked 	his
Constitutional right to represent himself in this criminal proceeding. Defendant’s motion to
appoint counsel (Doc. 68) is therefore TERMINATED as moot.
SO ORDERED, this the 13th day of October, 2026.
s/ Charles H. Weigle
Charles H. Weigle
United States Magistrate Judge
Case 5:26-cr-00007-MTT-CHW Document 76 Filed 10/13/26 Page 2 of 2