During the summer of 2023, Luke Wenke was found guilty of violating the conditions of his supervised release by indirectly contacting his cyberstalking victim by emailing the victim’s business partner. He was sentenced to time served and 34 months of continued probation.

Shortly thereafter, Wenke’s public defender filed an appeal on his behalf via the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York City. This was the first of two appeals cases that Wenke has pursued thus far throughout his ongoing legal saga.

The following document states that during a phone conversation in October 2023, Wenke’s public defender advised Wenke of his plan to file an Anders brief if Wenke continued to pursue his appeal. My legal knowledge is extremely limited, but from my understanding, a public defender files an Anders brief when they find the defendant’s appeal argument to be wholly frivolous. It’s essentially a court-appointed attorney’s request to withdraw from an appeal that they believe is meritless.

Wenke, who was detained at the Cattaraugus County Jail in Little Valley at the time, reportedly agreed to drop the appeal and signed the motion to withdraw (something he would later deny). The motion was granted and the case was closed.

USA v. Luke Wenke – Motion to Withdraw Appeal
November 1^st, 2023

CASE #23-6964, DKT. #10.1