Topic
Every decision we've filed under Mandatory Minimum.
The Fifth Circuit vacated a restitution order under the Mandatory Victims Restitution Act because the statute does not authorize awards for lost income or mental anguish absent bodily injury. The court held that bodily injury requires physical damage, not purely psychological harm.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed a restitution order in a child pornography case involving multiple victims. The court held the district court did not abuse its discretion by awarding amounts above the statutory minimum based on file counts and distribution conduct.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed a twenty-four-month sentence for a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. The court found sufficient evidence that the defendant fired the weapon used in an attempted murder during the commission of his offense.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed a federal sentence where the district court counted a state-expunged marijuana conviction toward the defendant's criminal history score. The court held that the expungement did not qualify for exclusion under the Sentencing Guidelines because it was not based on innocence or legal error.
The Fifth Circuit affirmed a sentence where the district court granted a substantial assistance motion but imposed a within-guidelines term. The appellate court found that while the district court erred in granting the motion without departing, the error did not affect the defendant's substantial rights.
The Eighth Circuit enforced a valid appeal waiver in a federal drug conspiracy case, dismissing the defendant's challenge to his guilty plea. The court found the defendant knowingly and voluntarily entered the plea agreement despite objections to specific drug quantities.
The Eighth Circuit affirmed a twenty-year mandatory minimum sentence for a defendant convicted of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl resulting in serious bodily injury. The court rejected the defendant's argument that the sentence violated the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment.
The Eleventh Circuit dismissed an appeal filed by a defendant who pleaded guilty to drug trafficking offenses. The court held that a valid sentence-appeal waiver in the plea agreement barred the defendant's due process claim regarding a government witness at sentencing.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed a mandatory minimum sentence under the Armed Career Criminal Act for a defendant with prior Georgia cocaine distribution convictions. The court held that Georgia law does not criminalize cocaine isomers outside the federal schedule, so the state statute is not broader than federal law.
The Eleventh Circuit affirmed a defendant's sentence for drug conspiracy, rejecting her claim that the district court failed to properly weigh sentencing factors. The court held that the district court acted within its discretion by considering the defendant's health issues while emphasizing the need for deterrence.