June 2, 2026·25-1232·Panel Decision·By James Taylor
The Eighth Circuit affirmed a within-Guidelines-range sentence for a defendant who pleaded guilty to a firearm offense. The court rejected arguments that the district court erred in applying a cross-reference for attempted murder or in imposing a substantively unreasonable sentence.
Background
Adrian Neeley appealed a within-Guidelines-range sentence imposed after he pleaded guilty to a firearm offense. He argued the district court erred in applying a cross-reference to the Guidelines provision for attempted murder and challenged the sentence as substantively unreasonable.
The court’s reasoning
The court concluded the district court did not err in calculating the Guidelines range using the cross-reference. It found Neeley failed to show clear error in the finding that he used the firearm to shoot at an occupied vehicle, establishing malice aforethought and premeditation. The court also determined the district court did not impose a substantively unreasonable sentence as it properly considered and weighed the factors listed in Section eighteen U.S.C. thirty-five fifty-three.
What it means going forward
The decision reinforces the Eighth Circuit’s standard for reviewing cross-reference applications in firearm cases and confirms that sentences are substantively reasonable when the district court properly weighs statutory factors.
