United States District Court, S.D. Alabama, Southern Division
ORDER
WILLIAM H. STEELE UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
This
matter is before the Court on the defendant's motion for
reduction of sentence pursuant to 18 U.S.C. §
3582(c)(1)(b). (Doc. 59).
On
December 21, 2018, the President signed S. 756, the First
Step Act of 2018, Pub. L. No. 115-391, 132 Stat. 5194
(“the Act”) into law. One feature of the Act
retroactively applies certain reduced statutory penalties for
crack cocaine offenses under the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010
(“FSA”) to “covered offenses”
committed before August 3, 2010. In particular, Section
404(b) of the Act provides as follows: “A court that
imposed a sentence for a covered offense may, on motion of
the defendant, impose a reduced sentence as if sections 2 and
3 of the [FSA] were in effect at the time the covered offense
was committed.” After review of the defendant's
motion, other relevant material in the file, and with the
benefit of analysis performed by the United States Probation
Office, the Court has determined that sentence reduction
based on the Act may be appropriate in this case.
The
defendant was charged in Count One of a multi-count
indictment with conspiracy to possess with intent to
distribute over 50 grams of crack cocaine.[1] (Doc. 8 at 1).
The defendant, pursuant to a plea agreement, pleaded guilty
to Count One. (Doc. 21). In September 2006, the Court
sentenced the defendant to 240 months imprisonment on Count
One and a consecutive 60 months on Count Three, a firearms
charge. (Doc. 26). Subsequently, but at the same sentencing
hearing, the defendant was sentenced to an additional 30
months on revocation of his supervised release term in a
previous drug case, “consecutive to the sentence
previously imposed in Case 06-58.” (Doc. 31 at 10-11;
accord United States v. Calhoun, Crim. Action No.
00-0112-WS, Doc. 209 at 2).[2]
The
defendant admitted the conspiracy and admitted it involved
over 50 grams of crack cocaine. (Doc. 20 at 13-14). The
presentence report (“PSR”) determined that the
defendant was accountable for 52.31 grams of crack cocaine.
(Doc. 25 at 5). When the defendant was sentenced, the
statutory minimum sentence for defendants accountable for
this amount of crack cocaine was ten years. Because the
defendant had a prior conviction for a felony offense,
(id. at 12), the statutory minimum sentence was
twenty years. 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(A). The
defendant's sentence under Count One therefore
represented the statutory minimum sentence.[3]
The FSA
increased the quantity of crack cocaine required to trigger
various minimum sentences. In particular, the minimum
quantity required for a ten-year statutory minimum sentence
(twenty years with a prior felony drug conviction) rose from
50 grams to 280 grams. Under the FSA, a defendant accountable
for 50 to 150 grams of crack cocaine is subject to a
mandatory minimum sentence of five years (ten years with a
prior felony drug conviction). 21 U.S.C. §
841(b)(1)(B).[4]
The
Court concludes that a sentence under Count One imposed as if
the FSA were in effect at the time the crime of conviction
was committed would be 120 months. Unless either party files
a written objection on or before July 8,
2019, the Court will enter an order reducing the
defendant's term of imprisonment under Count One to 120
months; the consecutive 60- month sentence under Count Three,
and the consecutive 30-month sentence in Criminal Action
00-0112-WS, will remain in place.[5]
DONE
and ORDERED.
---------
Notes:
[1] This is a “covered
offense” for purposes of the Act.
[2] Although the defendant includes the
case number of his 2000 case in the style of his instant
motion, he does not seek any reduction in his 30-month
sentence imposed thereunder. (Doc. 59 at 10).
[3] The nominal guideline range was 121 to
151 months, (Doc. 25 at 19), but when the guideline range
falls below the statutory minimum, the guideline range is
deemed to be the statutory minimum. U.S.S.G. §
5G1.1(b).
[4] Under guidelines reflecting the FSA,
the defendant's nominal guidelines range is 57 to 71
months, but the actual guideline range continues to be ...