USCA11 Case: 18-13532 Date Filed: 03/09/2021 Page: 1 of 19
[PUBLISH]
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT ________________________
No. 18-13532 ________________________
D.C. Docket No. 2:17-cr-14063-DLG-1
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
versus
JOSHUA LANE ROGERS, a.k.a. Joshua Laine Rogers,
Defendant-Appellant.
________________________
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida ________________________
(March 9, 2021)
Before JORDAN, JILL PRYOR, and BRANCH, Circuit Judges.
BRANCH, Circuit Judge: USCA11 Case: 18-13532 Date Filed: 03/09/2021 Page: 2 of 19
Joshua Rogers appeals his 360-month total sentence imposed after he
pleaded guilty to two counts of production of child pornography in violation of
18 U.S.C. § 2251(a), and one count of distribution of child pornography in
violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2252(a)(2). He raises various challenges to his sentence,
including that “the district court improperly attributed a four-level enhancement
under [U.S.S.G.] § 2G2.2(b)[(4)] for sadism/masochism for three separate
images.[1]” Because only one image that meets the requirements of § 2G2.2(b)(4)
is necessary to support the enhancement and we conclude that the photograph
showing Rogers’s hand around the minor’s throat depicted violence for purposes of
the application of the sadism/masochism enhancement, we affirm the district court
as to this issue.
Additionally, Rogers argues that the application of both U.S.S.G.
§§ 2G2.2(b)(5) and 4B1.5 constitutes impermissible double counting and the
application of U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(b)(6) was arbitrary. He also challenges the
exclusion of certain evidence at his sentencing hearing, and the substantive
1 In applying the U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(b)(4) enhancement, the district court reviewed a photograph along with two videos and determined that each of the three images independently qualified for the sadism/masochism enhancement. On appeal, Rogers argues that none of the images qualified for the enhancement. As discussed further in this opinion, we conclude that the photograph depicts violence and meets the criteria for the enhancement. Because only one qualifying image is necessary, we do not reach the question of whether the two videos also qualify. See United States v. Hoey, 508 F.3d 687, 691 (1st Cir. 2007) (explaining that “[i]t takes only one such image for [the enhancement] to apply”). 2 USCA11 Case: 18-13532 Date Filed: 03/09/2021 Page: 3 of 19
reasonableness of his sentence. Because we conclude there was no reversible error
and the sentence is substantively reasonable, we affirm.
I. Background
In December 2017, a federal grand jury indicted Rogers on five counts of
production of child pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2251(a) and (e)
(Counts 1 through 5) and five counts of distribution of child pornography, in
violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2252(a)(2) and (b)(1) (Counts 6 through 10). Pursuant to
a written plea agreement, Rogers pleaded guilty to Counts 3, 5, and 9, in exchange
for the government agreeing to dismiss the remaining counts following sentencing
and to recommend a guidelines reduction for acceptance of responsibility.
As part of the plea agreement, the parties stipulated to the following factual
basis. On September 3, 2017, Florida’s St. Lucie County law enforcement
responded to a missing person/juvenile runaway report made by the parents of
S.W., a 16-year-old female. S.W. had run away from home the day before. A few
weeks later, on September 27, 2020, law enforcement observed Rogers 2 at a
Dunkin’ Donuts with S.W. as his passenger. S.W. told law enforcement that she
met Rogers online and had been staying with Rogers at his home since she ran
away from her home. S.W. stated that she and Rogers used alcohol, marijuana,
and methamphetamine while she was staying with him, and that they engaged in
2 Rogers was 34 years old at the time of the offenses. 3 USCA11 Case: 18-13532 Date Filed: 03/09/2021 Page: 4 of 19
vaginal intercourse and oral sex. S.W. indicated that Rogers had recorded some of
their sexual activity, and he had recently posted a personal ad on Craigslist that
included images of S.W. and solicited group sex.
Law enforcement executed a search warrant on Rogers’s home and seized
his cell phone, a laptop, and various drug paraphernalia. A forensic analysis of the
cell phone and Rogers’s Google Drive account revealed hundreds of videos and
photographs depicting sexual conduct between S.W. and Rogers. All of the images
were produced between August 29, 2017 and September 25, 2017. Rogers
distributed many of the images and videos to other individuals via various
electronic means.
Following Rogers’s guilty plea, the United States Probation Office prepared
a presentence investigation report (“PSI”) using the 2016 Guidelines Manual.
Rogers’s applicable base offense level was 22. Numerous guidelines
enhancements were applied, including a four-level enhancement, pursuant to
U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(b)(4), because the offense involved material that portrayed
sadistic or masochistic conduct or other depictions of violence; 3 a five-level
enhancement, pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(b)(5), because Rogers engaged in a
3 U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(b)(4) provides that “[i]f the offense involved material that portrays (A) sadistic or masochistic conduct or other depictions of violence; or (B) sexual abuse or exploitation of an infant or toddler, increase by 4 levels.”
4 USCA11 Case: 18-13532 Date Filed: 03/09/2021 Page: 5 of 19
pattern of activity involving sexual abuse or exploitation of a minor;4 a two-level
enhancement, pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(b)(6), because a computer was used
for the possession, transmission, receipt, or distribution of the child pornography;5
and another five-level enhancement, pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 4B1.5(b)(1), because
the offenses of conviction were for covered sex crimes and the defendant engaged
in a pattern or practice of activity involving prohibited sexual conduct.6 Rogers’s
4 U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(b)(5) provides that “[i]f the defendant engaged in a pattern of activity involving the sexual abuse or exploitation of a minor, increase by 5 levels.” “Pattern of activity involving the sexual abuse or exploitation of a minor” is defined by the Guidelines as “any combination of two or more separate instances of the sexual abuse or sexual exploitation of a minor by the defendant, whether or not the abuse or exploitation (A) occurred during the course of the offense; (B) involved the same minor; or (C) resulted in a conviction for such conduct.” Id. § 2G2.2 cmt. (n.1). “Sexual abuse or exploitation” is defined by the Guidelines as “any of the following: (A) conduct described in 18 U.S.C. . . . § 2251(a)–(c) . . . .” Id. Rogers pleaded guilty to violating § 2251(a). 5 U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(b)(6) provides that “[i]f the offense involved the use of a computer or an interactive computer service for the possession, transmission, receipt, or distribution of the material, or for accessing with intent to view the material, increase by 2 levels.” 6 U.S.S.G. § 4B1.5(b)(1) provides that:
In any case in which the defendant’s instant offense of conviction is a covered sex crime, neither § 4B1.1 [Career Offender provision] nor subsection (a)[, which relates to defendants who have sustained a prior sex offense conviction,] of this guideline applies, and the defendant engaged in a pattern of activity involving prohibited sexual conduct:
(1) The offense level shall be 5 plus the offense level determined under Chapters Two and Three.
“Covered sex crimes” include offenses against a minor under . . . chapter 110 of [title 18, United States Code], not including trafficking in, receipt of, or possession of child pornography . . . . Id. § 4B1.5 cmt. (n.2). Rogers was convicted of violating 18 U.S.C. §§ 2251 and 2252, both of which fall under Chapter 110 of Title 18 of the United States Code. See generally 18 U.S.C. §§ 2251 & 2252.
5 USCA11 Case: 18-13532 Date Filed: 03/09/2021 Page: 6 of 19
resulting total offense level was 42, which, when combined with his criminal
history category of V, resulted in a guidelines range of 360 to 960 months’
imprisonment. 7
Rogers raised numerous factual and legal objections to information
contained in the PSI. As relevant to this appeal, he objected to the U.S.S.G.
§ 2G2.2(b)(4) enhancement, arguing that none of the images or videos portrayed
sadistic or masochistic conduct. The government maintained that the enhancement
was appropriate because one of the pictures depicted Rogers’s hand around the
throat of the minor victim as she lay nude on the bed and he appeared to be
choking her.
At the sentencing hearing, Rogers renewed his objection to the application
of the U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(b)(4) enhancement. The district court viewed the
photograph depicting Rogers’s hand around S.W.’s neck, as well as three videos.
After hearing argument on the propriety of the enhancement, the district court
found that “the choking event” photograph qualified for the enhancement. Rogers
did not raise any other legal objections to the guidelines calculation, and the
district court adopted the PSI.
7 The applicable guideline range based on a total offense level of 42 and a criminal history category of V was 360 months to life. See 2016 Guidelines Sentencing Table. But because the authorized statutory maximum sentence for Rogers’s offenses was 80 years (or 960 months) imprisonment, the guideline range became 360 to 960 months’ imprisonment, pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 5G1.1(c). See U.S.S.G.§ 5G1.1(c)(1) & commentary. 6 USCA11 Case: 18-13532 Date Filed: 03/09/2021 Page: 7 of 19
During the sentencing hearing, Rogers’s counsel sought to cross-examine
the lead detective as to how the police knew S.W. would be at the Dunkin’ Donuts
on September 27, 2017, and whether S.W. was an identified victim in two state
cases of statutory rape involving other adult men. The government objected to this
line of questioning based on Federal Rule of Evidence 412. 8 Rogers’s counsel
contended that she should be allowed to introduce testimony regarding the two
pending statutory rape cases because those cases also involved S.W. using drugs
and going to adult men’s houses to have sex, which she argued was relevant
because the government had referred to S.W. repeatedly as an “innocent victim” in
its sentencing memorandum. The district court stated that it would “consider the
fact that she was in touch with the victim advocate in similar scenarios before, that
is using drugs with older men—in the presence of older men, not that she had sex
with them, but in the presence of older men that—and that there are cases pending,
I’m going to consider it to that extent.”
The government requested a 50-year sentence. The defense argued for a
below guidelines sentence of the mandatory-minimum term of 15 years’
8 Rule 412 provides that evidence “that a victim engaged in other sexual behavior” or “evidence offered to prove a victim’s sexual predisposition” is not admissible in a criminal proceeding involving alleged sexual misconduct. Fed. R. Evid. 412(a). The rule includes exceptions where such evidence is offered to prove that the defendant was not the perpetrator, to prove the victim’s consent, or if the exclusion of such evidence would violate the defendant’s constitutional rights. Id. 412(b)(1). Notably, however, the Federal Rules of Evidence do not apply in sentencing proceedings. Fed. R. Evid. 1101(d)(3).
7 USCA11 Case: 18-13532 Date Filed: 03/09/2021 Page: 8 of 19
imprisonment, noting that Rogers had no prior history of sexual offenses and had
extensive support from his mother and friends. The district court imposed a total
sentence of 360 months’ imprisonment, followed by supervised release for life.9
Rogers’s counsel objected to the substantive reasonableness of the sentence. This
appeal followed.
II. Standards of Review
“We review de novo the interpretation and application of the Guidelines, and
we review underlying factual findings for clear error. For a factual finding to be
clearly erroneous, we must be left with a definite and firm conviction that the court
made a mistake.” United States v. Tejas, 868 F.3d 1242, 1244 (11th Cir. 2017)
(internal citation omitted).
“When interpreting the guidelines, we apply the traditional rules of statutory
construction.” United States v. Fulford, 662 F.3d 1174, 1177 (11th Cir. 2011)
(quotations omitted). “The language of the Sentencing Guidelines, like the
language of a statute, must be given its plain and ordinary meaning, because [a]s
9 At the sentencing hearing, the district court imposed concurrent terms of 384 months’ imprisonment as to both Count 3 and Count 5, and a concurrent term of 240 months as to Count 9, followed by supervised release for life. No party objected to this sentence, even though the sentence exceeded the 360-month statutory maximum as to Counts 3 and 5. Recognizing this error, the district court issued a paperless entry on the docket that same day vacating the 384- month sentence, and resentencing Rogers to a total of 360 months’ imprisonment (concurrent terms of 360 months as to Counts 3 and 5 and 240 months as to Count 9), followed by supervised release for life. The controlling judgment entered six days later reflected the revised sentence of 360 months. 8 USCA11 Case: 18-13532 Date Filed: 03/09/2021 Page: 9 of 19
with Congress, we presume that the Sentencing Commission said what it meant
and meant what it said.” Id.
“We review unpreserved sentencing objections only for plain error.” United
States v. Corbett, 921 F.3d 1032, 1037 (11th Cir. 2019). To establish plain error, a
defendant must show: (1) an error; (2) that was obvious; and (3) that affected the
defendant’s substantial rights; and (4) that seriously affected the fairness, integrity,
or public reputation of judicial proceedings. United States v. Olano, 507 U.S. 725,
732–36 (1993).
“We review the evidentiary rulings of the district court for clear abuse of
discretion.” United States v. Machado, 886 F.3d 1070, 1085 n.14 (11th Cir. 2018).
We review the reasonableness of a sentence for abuse of discretion. Gall v.
United States, 552 U.S. 38, 41 (2007). The appellant bears the burden of
demonstrating that the sentence is unreasonable in light of the record and the
18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) sentencing factors. United States v. Tome, 611 F.3d 1371,
1378 (11th Cir. 2010). We will vacate a sentence as substantively unreasonable
only if “we ‘are left with the definite and firm conviction that the district court
committed a clear error of judgment in weighing the § 3553(a) factors by arriving
at a sentence that lies outside the range of reasonable sentences dictated by the
facts of the case.’” United States v. Irey, 612 F.3d 1160, 1190 (11th Cir. 2010) (en
banc) (quoting United States v. Pugh, 515 F.3d 1179, 1191 (11th Cir. 2008)).
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III. Discussion
A. Whether the district court erred in applying the U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(b)(4) enhancement
Rogers argues that the photograph examined by the district court, which
depicts his hand around the nude minor’s throat while she is lying on a bed, does
not satisfy the criteria for the U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(b)(4) enhancement. U.S.S.G.
§ 2G2.2(b)(4) provides for a four-level enhancement “[i]f the offense involved
material that portrays sadistic or masochistic conduct or other depictions of
violence.” The Guidelines do not define “sadistic,” “masochistic” or “depictions
of violence.” “In the absence of any guideline definition, we must construe the
phrase[s] according to [their] ordinary and natural meaning.” United States v.
Young, 115 F.3d 834, 836 (11th Cir. 1997); see also United States v. Digiorgio,
193 F.3d 1175, 1178 (11th Cir. 1999) (explaining that where the Guidelines do not
define a term, “we are bound to give the term its ordinary meaning”).
Merriam-Webster defines “sadistic” as “of or characterized by sadism.”
Sadistic, Webster’s Third New International Dictionary Unabridged (2005),
https://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/sadistic (last visited March 8,
2021). “Sadism” is defined as “the infliction of pain upon a love object as a means
of obtaining sexual release,” “delight in physical or mental cruelty,” or “excessive
cruelty.” Sadism, Webster’s Third New International Dictionary Unabridged,
https://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/ sadism (last visited March 8, 10 USCA11 Case: 18-13532 Date Filed: 03/09/2021 Page: 11 of 19
2021). “Masochism” is defined as “a tendency to gain or to increase sexual
gratification through the acceptance of physical abuse or humiliation.”
Masochism, Webster’s Third New International Dictionary Unabridged,
https://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/masochism (last visited
March 8, 2021). And finally, “violence” is defined in relevant part as the “exertion
of any physical force so as to injure or abuse.” Violence, Webster’s Third New
International Dictionary Unabridged, https://unabridged.merriam-
webster.com/unabridged/violence (last visited March 8, 2021).
The district court concluded that the photograph depicted a “choking event,”
and that it qualified for the enhancement. The question of whether an image
portrays sadistic or masochistic conduct or other depictions of violence is strictly
an objective inquiry. See United States v. Bleau, 930 F.3d 35, 40 (2d Cir. 2019)
(“We note that the analysis of whether an image is ‘sadistic’ under § 2G2.2(b)(4) is
strictly objective.”); United States v. Corp, 668 F.3d 379, 389 (6th Cir. 2012) (“We
agree with our sister circuits that whether a particular image can be classified as
portraying sadistic or masochistic conduct . . . is an objective determination.”).
Thus, the inquiry should focus on whether the image depicts conduct that an
objective observer would perceive as sadistic, masochistic, or violent, rather than
making “subjective determinations about the thoughts or intentions of the specific
individuals being depicted.” Corp, 668 F.3d at 389.
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Having viewed the photograph, we conclude the district court’s
determination that the image portrayed choking was not clearly erroneous. We
agree that the photograph objectively depicts choking of the minor based on the
placement of Rogers’s hand around S.W.’s throat, the defensive posture of S.W.’s
neck and chin, and the physical appearance of Rogers’s knuckles and fingertips
that indicated a tight grip. Thus, at a minimum, the photograph depicts violence,
and depictions of violence qualify for the enhancement. See U.S.S.G.
§ 2G2.2(b)(4). Therefore, we affirm the application of this enhancement.
B. Whether the application of both U.S.S.G. §§ 2G2.2(b)(5) and 4B1.5 constitute impermissible double counting
Rogers argues that the application of both U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(b)(5)—which
provides for a five-level guideline increase “[i]f the defendant engaged in a pattern
of activity involving the sexual abuse or exploitation of a minor”—and
§ 4B1.5(b)(1)—which provides for a five-level guideline increase where “the
defendant’s instant offense of conviction is a covered sex crime . . . and the
defendant engaged in a pattern of activity involving prohibited sexual conduct”—is
arbitrary and constitutes impermissible double counting. Rogers did not raise a
specific double-counting objection to the applications of these guideline
enhancements in his written objections to the PSI or at the sentencing hearing.
Therefore, we review only for plain error. Corbett, 921 F.3d at 1037.
12 USCA11 Case: 18-13532 Date Filed: 03/09/2021 Page: 13 of 19
Rogers failed to establish plain error. “Impermissible double counting
occurs only when one part of the Guidelines is applied to increase a defendant’s
punishment on account of a kind of harm that has already been fully accounted for
by application of another part of the Guidelines.” United States v. Cubero, 754
F.3d 888, 894 (11th Cir. 2014) (quoting United States v. Dudley, 463 F.3d 1221,
1226–27 (11th Cir. 2006)). Double counting is permitted, however, “if the
Sentencing Commission intended that result and each guideline section in question
concerns conceptually separate notions relating to sentencing.” United States v.
Stevenson, 68 F.3d 1292, 1294 (11th Cir. 1995). “We presume that the Sentencing
Commission intended separate guidelines sections to apply cumulatively, unless
specifically directed otherwise.” Cubero, 754 F.3d at 894 (quoting Dudley, 463
F.3d at 1227).
Section 4B1.5(b)(1) provides that:
In any case in which the defendant’s instant offense of conviction is a covered sex crime . . . and the defendant engaged in a pattern of activity involving prohibited sexual conduct: (1) The offense level shall be 5 plus the offense level determined under Chapters Two and Three.
U.S.S.G. § 4B1.5(b)(1) (emphasis added). Thus, the plain language of the
guidelines establishes that the Sentencing Commission intended for the
enhancements provided for in Chapter 4 to apply cumulatively to any other
enhancements from Chapters 2 and 3. See Stevenson, 68 F.3d at 1294.
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Accordingly, the application of U.S.S.G. §§ 2G2.2(b)(5) and 4B1.5 is not
impermissible double counting and is therefore not plain error. 10
C. Whether the district court abused its discretion during the sentencing hearing in excluding evidence regarding the two pending state statutory rape cases involving S.W.
Rogers argues that, during the sentencing hearing, the district court violated
his constitutional rights under the confrontation clause, his right to due process,
and his right to present a defense when it prevented him from cross-examining the
detective about S.W.’s involvement in two other pending statutory rape cases
involving adult men, which he maintains was valuable impeachment and
mitigation evidence. He asserts that he should have been able to elicit this
information because the government “opened the door” when it repeatedly referred
to S.W. as an “innocent child” in its sentencing memorandum and when S.W. and
her mother made statements indicating that she did not go with Rogers willingly.
The district court’s denial of Rogers’s request to cross-examine the detective
regarding the two statutory rape cases in which S.W. was also the identified victim
did not violate his constitutional rights as the confrontation clause and right to
10 Rogers also challenges the two-level enhancement under U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(b)(6) for the use of a computer for the distribution of the child pornography. Nevertheless, as Rogers acknowledges, this claim is squarely foreclosed by our decision in United States v. Little, 864 F.3d 1283 (11th Cir. 2017) (holding that the application of § 2G2.2(b)(6) for use of a computer is proper and is not double counting because the use of a computer is not required for the transmission or distribution of child pornography in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2252). Consequently, we do not address this claim further. 14 USCA11 Case: 18-13532 Date Filed: 03/09/2021 Page: 15 of 19
cross-examination do not extend to non-capital sentencing proceedings. United
States v. Cantellano, 430 F.3d 1142, 1146 (11th Cir. 2005); see also United States
v. Giltner, 889 F.2d 1004, 1008 (11th Cir. 1989) (“While due process requires that
appellant be afforded the opportunity to refute the information brought against him
at sentencing, it does not require that appellant be given the opportunity to call and
cross-examine witnesses to rebut the information.” (internal citation omitted)).
With regard to Rogers’s contention that the exclusion of this testimony
prevented him from presenting valuable impeachment and mitigation evidence,
although the district court did not permit cross-examination of the detective on this
issue and declined to consider S.W.’s sexual conduct with the other men, it stated
that it would consider the existence of the statutory rape cases in which S.W. was a
victim and the contention that she used drugs with adult men on prior occasions.
Thus, Rogers had the opportunity to rebut the information presented at sentencing,
and he has not demonstrated that the district court abused its discretion in striking a
balance between the impeachment/mitigation evidence Rogers sought to present
and protecting the privacy of the teenage victim. See United States v. Barnett, 587
F.2d 252, 259–60 (5th Cir. 1979) (“The right of rebuttal does not require that the
sentencing hearing be transformed into a second trial. At a minimum it is
sufficient if the sentencing judge affords the defendant an opportunity to comment
15 USCA11 Case: 18-13532 Date Filed: 03/09/2021 Page: 16 of 19
on any alleged factual inaccuracy.” (internal citations omitted)). As we
emphasized previously,
[e]ven though some testimony may be received, the sentencing process is not a trial. Its purpose is to ensure that the district court is sufficiently informed to enable it to exercise its sentencing discretion in an enlightened manner. Having been presented with some contradictory facts, the district court may within its discretion, determine that it has adequate undisputed information to properly sentence the defendant.
United States v. Stephens, 699 F.2d 534, 537 (11th Cir. 1983); see also Giltner,
889 F.2d at 1008 (“It is within the discretion of the district judge to determine the
kinds and form of information it will consider” at sentencing.).
Accordingly, the district court did not abuse its discretion in excluding this
information.
D. Whether Rogers’s sentence is substantively unreasonable
Rogers argues that his within guidelines 360-month sentence is substantively
unreasonable because the district court “failed to recognize legitimate mitigating
evidence” and failed to account for the “artificial inflation of the sentencing
guidelines” due to the multiple guideline enhancements.
Rogers has not met his burden of establishing that his sentence is
substantively unreasonable. He fails to specify what “legitimate mitigating
evidence” the district court failed to consider, and to the extent that he is referring
to S.W.’s sexual history, as discussed above, the district court did not abuse its
16 USCA11 Case: 18-13532 Date Filed: 03/09/2021 Page: 17 of 19
discretion in failing to consider this information. Further, as discussed previously,
the inclusion of the enhancements for pattern of activity and use of a computer
were proper, and, therefore, did not artificially inflate the guidelines calculation.
A district court is required to impose a sentence that is “sufficient, but not
greater than necessary, to comply with the purposes set forth in [§ 3553(a)(2),]”
including the need to reflect the seriousness of the offense, promote respect for the
law, provide just punishment, deter criminal conduct, and protect the public from
future crimes of the defendant. 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)(2). In determining the
appropriate sentence, the district court must consider a variety of factors,
including: (1) the nature and circumstances of the offense; (2) the history and
characteristics of the defendant; (3) the kinds of sentences available; (4) the
applicable sentencing guidelines range and pertinent policy statements of the
Sentencing Commission; (5) the need to avoid unwarranted sentencing disparities;
and (6) the need to provide restitution to victims. Id. § 3553(a). “The weight to be
accorded any given § 3553(a) factor is a matter committed to the sound discretion
of the district court.” United States v. Clay, 483 F.3d 739, 743 (11th Cir. 2007)
(quoting United States v. Williams, 456 F.3d 1353, 1363 (11th Cir. 2006)).
While Rogers may quarrel with the length of the sentence, the record
establishes that the district court considered the § 3553(a) factors and explained
that the sentence imposed “adequately reflect[ed] the seriousness of the offense
17 USCA11 Case: 18-13532 Date Filed: 03/09/2021 Page: 18 of 19
and provide[d] just punishment.” Rogers has not shown that the district court
failed to consider relevant factors that were due significant weight, gave significant
weight to improper factors, or otherwise committed a clear error of judgment in
considering the proper factors. See Irey, 612 F.3d at 1189 (explaining that “[a]
district court abuses its discretion when it (1) fails to afford consideration to
relevant factors that were due significant weight, (2) gives significant weight to an
improper or irrelevant factor, or (3) commits a clear error of judgment in
considering the proper factors”). Moreover, the sentence imposed was at the
bottom of the applicable guidelines range (360 to 960 months), which is an
indicator of reasonableness. See United States v. Asante, 782 F.3d 639, 648 (11th
Cir. 2015) (explaining that “we ‘ordinarily expect a sentence within the Guidelines
range to be reasonable’” (quoting United States v. Hunt, 526 F.3d 739, 746 (11th
Cir. 2008))). In short, given the broad sentencing discretion that district courts
have and in light of the totality of the circumstances, we are simply not “left with
the definite and firm conviction that the district court committed a clear error of
judgment.” Irey, 612 F.3d at 1190.
Accordingly, we conclude that Rogers’s total 360-month sentence is
substantively reasonable.
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IV. Conclusion
For the foregoing reasons, we affirm Rogers’s sentence.
AFFIRMED.