United States v. Jay Lloyd McDonald Also Known as Charles McDonald

106 F.3d 1218, 1997 U.S. App. LEXIS 3274, 1997 WL 73840
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
DecidedFebruary 21, 1997
Docket96-50466
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 106 F.3d 1218 (United States v. Jay Lloyd McDonald Also Known as Charles McDonald) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Jay Lloyd McDonald Also Known as Charles McDonald, 106 F.3d 1218, 1997 U.S. App. LEXIS 3274, 1997 WL 73840 (5th Cir. 1997).

Opinion

PER CURIAM:

BACKGROUND

Jay Lloyd McDonald pleaded guilty to both counts of an indictment that charged him with using false identification documents and possessing 15 or more unauthorized access devices. At his plea proceeding, McDonald agreed to the following factual basis for his plea: Upon his arrests after the revocation of his state probation, a search of his vehicle revealed that he was carrying at least five false identification documents; most of the documents bore the name of Charles McDonald and one was a false driver’s license. McDonald also was carrying more than 15 “access devices,” including fraudulently obtained credit cards and blank cheeks. McDonald had used these items to defraud many merchants and financial institutions, in the amount of approximately $82,-679.54.

In McDonald’s Presentence Report (“PSR”), the Probation Office made the following recommendations regarding his sentence: McDonald’s base offense level was 6. U.S.S.G. § 2Fl.l(a). Six levels were to be added because McDonald caused more than $70,000 in losses. U.S.S.G. § 2Fl.l(b)(l)(G). A further two-level increase was required because his offense involved “more than minimal planning.” U.S.S.G. § 2Fl.l(b)(2). McDonald was entitled to a two-level reduction for acceptance of responsibility, resulting in a total offense level of 12. U.S.S.G. § 3El.l(a). His criminal history score was 10, for a Category V criminal history; one criminal-history point was attributable to a 1994 Texas misdemeanor conviction for “failure to identify,” in which he gave a fictitious name and showed a false- driver’s license to police officers. McDonald’s total offense level and criminal history score combined for a sentencing guideline range of 27 to 33 months.

McDonald objected to the inclusion of the “failure to identify” offense in his criminal history score. Citing § 4A1.2(c)(l)(A), he argued that it should not count because it was a misdemeanor with a prison term of less than 30 days. The Probation Office countered that the 1994 offense was includable because it involved “similar conduct” to his federal offense, in that McDonald had used a fraudulent driver’s license in an attempt to avoid arrest after an officer arrived with an arrest warrant. Id.

At sentencing, the , district court overruled McDonald’s objection, reasoning that “the substance of the failure to identify ... was not only a failure to identify but to give a fictitious name” and that the prior • offense was therefore “close enough to the type of conduct involved” in this case to warrant its inclusion in McDonald’s criminal history score. The court sentenced McDonald to concurrent 30-month prison terms and a three-year supervised release term and ordered him to pay $35,922.76 in restitution. McDonald timely filed a notice of appeal.

OPINION

McDonald contends that his 1994 misdemeanor offense for “failure to identify” should not have been included in his criminal history score. He observes that the state offense, which involved providing false information to a police officer, is specifically listed in § 4A1.2(c)(l) as a misdemeanor conviction that is ordinarily to be excluded in computing that score. Acknowledging that such offenses may be counted if the “prior offense was similar to an instant offense,” McDonald contends that his 1994 Texas offense was different from both of federal charges to which he pleaded guilty. He also argues that he was prejudiced, because without the one criminal-history point for the 1994 offense, his score would have been only nine and he would have had only a Category TV criminal history.

*1220 “Misdemeanor offenses and petty offenses are generally considered in calculating a defendant’s criminal history score.” United States v. Gadison, 8 F.3d 186, 193 (5th Cir.1993) (citing § 4A1.2(e)). However,

(1) [sentences for the following prior offenses and offenses similar to them, by whatever name they are known, are counted only if (A) the sentence was a term of probation of at least one year or a term of imprisonment of at least thirty days, 1 or (B) the prior offense was similar to the instant offense:
False information to a police officer_

§ 4A1.2(c)(l) (emphasis added).

In United States v. Hardeman, 933 F.2d 278 (5th Cir.1991), [this Court] established a “common sense” approach to determine when a prior offense is “similar” to one of the enumerated exempted offenses in § 4A1.2(c)(1). The Hardeman approach requires the district court to assess all factors of similarity, including
a comparison of punishments imposed for the listed and unlisted offenses, the perceived seriousness of the offense as indicated by the level of punishment, the elements of the offense, the level of culpability involved, and the degree to which the commission of the offense indicates a likelihood of recurring criminal conduct.
Hardeman, 933 F.2d at 281. A court employing the Hardeman factors should do so cognizant of the fact that the criminal history factors are designed to take into account the relative severity of a prior offense as well as the degree to which it indicates the likelihood of future criminal behavior. Id. at 281-82.

Gadison, 8 F.3d at 193. “The word ‘offense’, as used [in § 4A1.2(e) ], includes any relevant conduct and not just the conduct charged in the indictment.” United States v. Moore, 997 F.2d 30, 34 (5th Cir.1993) (citation omitted). “In reviewing [such] claim[s], we must accept the factual findings of the district court unless clearly erroneous, but we review de novo the application of the guidelines for errors of law.” Id. (citation and internal quotation marks omitted).

In McDonald’s ease, the Probation Office urged that his 1994 conviction for “failure to identify” was similar to his instant conviction for possession of false identification documents because both involved the use of a false driver’s license. McDonald’s federal conviction for possession of false identification documents is based on the following provisions:

(a) Whoever, in a circumstance described in subsection (c) of this section— ...
(3) knowingly possesses with intent to use unlawfully ... five or more ... false identification documents; ... or attempts to do so, shall be punished as provided in subsection (b) of this section.

18 U.S.C. § 1028(a). Subsection (c) refers to the circumstance that “the ... possession prohibited by this section is in or affects interstate or foreign commerce....” § 1028(c)(3). If the offense involves more than five identification documents, the offender is subject to imprisonment of up to five years. § 1028(b)(1)(B).

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106 F.3d 1218, 1997 U.S. App. LEXIS 3274, 1997 WL 73840, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-jay-lloyd-mcdonald-also-known-as-charles-mcdonald-ca5-1997.