Can a Defendant refuse to appeal their conviction for failing to pay the Attorney General's fees?

In Mitchell v. United States, (1958), 103 U.S.App.D.C. 97, 254 F.2d 954, defendant alleged his trial counsel refused to appeal because defendant could not pay him a fee. "But such a refusal, in the circumstances of this case, is not a ground for vacating the sentence.

"It has been said that `failure to appeal may not be excused upon a mere showing of neglect of counsel.' Dennis v. United States, 4 Cir., 177 F.2d 195. Perhaps that statement is too broad. We need not now decide whether failure to appeal would be a denial of effective assistance, and would open a conviction to `collateral attack' under 2255, if there were plain reversible error in the trial. There was no such plain error in this trial."