United States v. Asper

753 F. Supp. 1289, 1990 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 20184, 1990 WL 236109
CourtDistrict Court, M.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedDecember 13, 1990
DocketNos. CR-90-043, CR-90-088
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 753 F. Supp. 1289 (United States v. Asper) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Asper, 753 F. Supp. 1289, 1990 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 20184, 1990 WL 236109 (M.D. Pa. 1990).

Opinion

MUIR, District Judge.

THE BACKGROUND OF THIS ORDER IS AS FOLLOWS:

Today we issued an opinion and order setting forth the background of this case and calculating the sentencing guideline ranges. In that opinion and order of December 13, 1990, we determined as to the post October, 1987, crimes the guideline imprisonment range and the fine range. We left unresolved the question of departure from the guidelines. A presentence hearing on the departure question was held December 11, 1990. This order relates only to departure from the guidelines and does not relate to the pre-November, 1987, felony counts.

Both the Government and Asper object to paragraph 99 of the presentence report which states “[tjhere appear to be no aggravating or mitigating circumstances that would warrant a departure from the guidelines.” U.S.S.G. § 5K2.0 indicates in part:

Under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(b) the sentencing court may impose a sentence outside the range established by the applicable guideline, if the court finds “that there exists an aggravating or mitigating circumstance of a kind, or to a degree not adequately taken into consideration by the Sentencing Commission in formulating the guidelines that should result in a sentence different from that described.”

First, the Government argues that “the Sentencing Commission did not contemplate the income derived by a violator of wildlife laws as a result of exploitation of the illegally-taken wildlife.” However, we are of the view that the enhancements for commercial purpose and market value adequately address this concern.

Second, the Government argues that departure is warranted under U.S.S.G. § 5K2.7 because “Asper’s illegal trade of wildlife protected by the CITES treaty significantly disrupted the function of the United States, a member nation of CITES, of protecting wildlife listed on the treaty’s Appendices” and Asper’s “failure to declare the wildlife upon entry into the United States disrupted the ability of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to monitor the importation of wildlife in order to protect the health and welfare of the general public.”

U.S.S.G. § 5K2.7 indicates:

If the defendant’s conduct resulted in a significant disruption of a governmental function, the court may increase the sentence above the authorized guideline range to reflect the nature and extent of the disruption and the importance of the governmental function affected. Departure from the guidelines ordinarily would not be justified when the offense of conviction is an offense such as bribery or obstruction of justice; in such cases interference with a governmental function is inherent in the offense, and unless the circumstances are unusual the guidelines will reflect the appropriate punishment for such interference.

A disruption of a governmental function in the instant case was not present in excess of that which ordinarily is involved in the offenses of which Asper was found guilty. Furthermore, a departure for disruption of a governmental function cannot be premised solely on the inconvenience resulting from investigating a criminal offense or performing duties that are part of the mandate of a particular agency or branch of government. Thus, a departure on this basis is not warranted.

Third, the Government argues that a departure is warranted pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 5K2.8 which provides:

If the defendant’s conduct was unusually heinous, cruel, brutal, or degrading to the victim, the court may increase [1292]*1292the sentence above the guideline range to reflect the nature of the conduct. Examples of extreme conduct include torture of a victim, gratuitous infliction of injury, or prolonging of pain or humiliation.

We are of the view that this section may apply in instances where you have an identifiable, individual victim, not where the victim is society in general. The language “heinous, cruel, brutal, or degrading to the victim” and “torture of a victim, gratuitous infliction of injury, or prolonging of pain or humiliation” supports this conclusion.

Fourth, the Government argues that a departure is warranted pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 5K2.9 which provides:

If the defendant committed the offense in order to facilitate or conceal the commission of another offense, the court may increase the sentence above the guideline range to reflect the actual seriousness of the defendant’s conduct.

The Government contends that the transportation and concealment of the Jentink’s Duiker mount was an attempt to prevent the discovery of the illegal importation and the possession of the animal. We decline to depart on this ground because we have considered this conduct in determining the total offense level.

Fifth, the Government contends that a departure is warranted pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 4A1.3 which provides in part:

§ 4A1.3. Adequacy of Criminal History Category (Policy Statement)
If reliable information indicates that the criminal history category does not adequately reflect the seriousness of the defendant’s past criminal conduct or the likelihood that the defendant will commit other crimes, the court may consider imposing a sentence departing from the otherwise applicable guideline range. Such information may include, but is not limited to, information concerning:
(a) prior sentence(s) not used in computing the criminal history category {e.g., sentences for foreign and tribal offenses);
(b) prior sentence(s) of substantially more than one year imposed as a result of independent crimes committed on different occasions;
(c) prior similar misconduct established by a civil adjudication or by a failure to comply with an administrative order;
(d) whether the defendant was pending trial, sentencing, or appeal on another charge at the time of the instant offense;
(e) prior similar adult criminal conduct not resulting in a criminal conviction.
A departure under this provision is warranted when the criminal history category significantly underrepresents the seriousness of the defendant’s criminal history or the likelihood that the defendant will commit further crimes.

The Government raises two instances of prior similar adult criminal conduct not resulting in a criminal conviction. In 1976 Asper imported a shipment of hunting trophies from Africa. Asper attempted to bring into this country the skins of a Nile crocodile and a leopard hidden deep within the folds of an African elephant hide. Both the leopard and the Nile crocodile were listed as endangered species that cannot be imported into the United States without special permits which Asper did not receive. Asper was cited by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service with violations of the Endangered Species Act and the Lacey Act for which he paid a civil penalty of $1,200.00.

The second incident occurred in 1979 when Asper was assessed a civil penalty for a violation of the Bald Eagle Protection Act for the possession of a Bald Eagle which he had had mounted by a taxidermist, Donald Young.

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Bluebook (online)
753 F. Supp. 1289, 1990 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 20184, 1990 WL 236109, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-asper-pamd-1990.