United States v. O'Connor

874 F.3d 1147
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
DecidedOctober 30, 2017
Docket16-3300
StatusPublished
Cited by63 cases

This text of 874 F.3d 1147 (United States v. O'Connor) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Tenth 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. O'Connor, 874 F.3d 1147 (10th Cir. 2017).

Opinion

MATHESON, Circuit Judge.

Darnell O’Connor pled guilty to violating 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1), which bars felons from possessing firearms. The Government argued Mr. O’Connor’s sentence should be enhanced under § 2K2.1(a)(4)(A) of the United States Sentencing Guidelines (“U.S.S.G.” or “the Guidelines”) because he had a prior felony conviction for robbery under the Hobbs Act, 18 U.S.C. § 1951—a “crime of violence.” See U.S.S.G. § 2K2.1(a)(4)(A). The district court agreed and sentenced Mr. O’Connor to 32 months in prison.

On appeal, Mr. O’Connor argues his pri- or conviction for Hobbs Act robbery is not a “crime of violence” under the Guidelines. We agree. Exercising jurisdiction under 18 U.S.C. § 3742(a) and 28 U.S.C. § 1291, we vacate his sentence and remand for resen-tencing.

I. BACKGROUND

Mr. O’Connor pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm, a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1), without the benefit of a plea agreement. The Presentence Investigation Report (“PSR”) determined Mr. O’Connor’s base offense level was 20 based on U.S.S.G. § 2K2.1(a)(4)(A), which applies when a defendant’s instant offense is preceded by one felony conviction for a “crime of violence.” 1

The PSR said Mr. O’Connor had sustained two felony convictions for:

(1) Aiding and abetting in the interference of commerce by means of robbery, see 18 U.S.C. §§ 2(a), 1951(b)(1); and
(2) Aiding and abetting in the brandishing of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, see 18 U.S.C. §§ 2, 924(c)(l)(A)(ii).

The statute underlying his first conviction—18 U.S.C. § 1951—is known as the “Hobbs Act.” 2

Mr. O’Connor argued neither conviction triggered § 2K2.1(a)(4)(A) and that his base offense level, as prescribed by § 2K2.1(a)(6), should be 14—not 20. The Government responded that the PSR had correctly determined his base offense level. It argued his conviction for aiding and abetting a Hobbs Act robbery was a “crime of violence,” but it did not address his other prior conviction for brandishing a firearm.

The district court concluded that Hobbs Act robbery was a crime of violence under § 2K2.1(a)(4)(A), and Mr. O’Connor’s base offense level was thus 20. Adjusted for a three-point reduction for acceptance of responsibility, see U.S.S.G. §§ 3El.l(a), (b), his total offense level was 17. Coupled with a criminal history category of III, Mr. O’Connor’s Guidelines range was 30 to 37 months in prison. The court sentenced him to 32 months in prison, followed by a three-year term of supervised release. Like the Government, the court did not address his brandishing conviction.

Mr. O’Connor filed a timely notice of appeal. See Fed. R. App. P. 4(b)(l)(A)(i).

II. DISCUSSION

We first recognize 1 our standard of review and then address relevant legal background explaining how courts determine whether a defendant’s past convictions may enhance a sentence under the Guidelines. Applying the law to Mr. O’Connor’s conviction for Hobbs Act robbery under § 1951(b)(1), we conclude it is not a qualifying “crime of violence” Guidelines offense and remand for resentencing.

A. Standard of Review

“Whether a prior conviction qualifies as a ‘crime of violence’ under the Guidelines is a legal question that we examine de novo.” United States v. Thomas, 643 F.3d 802, 804 (10th Cir. 2011) (quotations omitted).

B. Legal Background

In this section, we discuss (1) the relevant Guidelines provisions, (2) Mr. O’Con-nor’s prior conviction under the Hobbs Act, and (3) the categorical approach courts use to determine whether a prior conviction constitutes a predicate offense warranting an enhanced sentencing range.

1. The Guidelines

a. Base offense level

Section 2K2.1 specifies a base offense level of 20 for a felon-in-possession conviction if “the defendant committed any part of the instant offense subsequent to sustaining one felony conviction of either a crime of violence or a controlled substance offense.” U.S.S.G. § 2K2.1(a)(4)(A). This case does not involve a controlled substance offense, so only “crime of violence” is relevant here.

b. “Crime of Violence” definition

A conviction' can qualify as a “crime of violence” in two ways. First, it might be one or more of the “enumerated offenses” listed in U.S.S.G. § 4B1.2(a)(2) (the “enumerated offense clause”). 3 The two • enumerated -offenses relevant here are robbery and extortion. Although Mr. O’Connor’s underlying conviction was for Hobbs Act robbery, we nevertheless must determine- whether the conviction could fall within any of the enumerated offenses. See United States v. Castillo, 811 F.3d 342, 346 (10th Cm. 2015). Because the Government contends Hobbs,Act rob-, bery fits categorically within the enumerated offenses of robbery or extortion, we address both of these offenses below. Second, a conviction might be a “crime of violence” if it “has as an element the use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force against the person of another,” see id. at § 4B1.2(a)(l) (the “force clause” or “elements clause”). 4

The Guidelines commentary defines some of the enumerated offenses, but not all. “Robbery,” for instance,, is undefined. But Guidelines Amendment 798, effective August 1, 2016, defines “extortion” to mean “obtaining something of value from another by the wrongful use of (i) force, (ii) fear of physical injury, or (iii) threat of physical injury.” See U.S.S.G. Supp. to App. C, Amend, 798 at 131 (Nov. 1, 2016) (“Amendment 798”). 5

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Platt v. United States
W.D. Oklahoma, 2025
United States v. Cleveland
Tenth Circuit, 2024
United States v. Manzano
112 F.4th 915 (Tenth Circuit, 2024)
Judd v. State
140 Nev. Adv. Op. No. 21 (Court of Appeals of Nevada, 2024)
United States v. Devereaux
91 F.4th 1361 (Tenth Circuit, 2024)
United States v. Jarmaine Carter
69 F.4th 361 (Sixth Circuit, 2023)
United States v. McCoy
58 F.4th 72 (Second Circuit, 2023)
United States v. Lanking
Tenth Circuit, 2023
Wilson v. United States
M.D. Florida, 2022
Broadnax v. United States
S.D. New York, 2022
United States v. Baker
Tenth Circuit, 2022
McFadden v. USA 2255
D. Maryland, 2022
United States v. Chappelle
41 F.4th 102 (Second Circuit, 2022)
United States v. Wilkins
30 F.4th 1198 (Tenth Circuit, 2022)
United States v. Crews
District of Columbia, 2021
Peralta v. United States
S.D. New York, 2021
United States v. Eric Scott
14 F.4th 190 (Third Circuit, 2021)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
874 F.3d 1147, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-oconnor-ca10-2017.