United States v. Torres

747 F. Supp. 813, 1990 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13455, 1990 WL 153225
CourtDistrict Court, D. Maine
DecidedSeptember 21, 1990
DocketCr. No. 89-00033-04-P
StatusPublished

This text of 747 F. Supp. 813 (United States v. Torres) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Maine primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Torres, 747 F. Supp. 813, 1990 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13455, 1990 WL 153225 (D. Me. 1990).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OF SENTENCING JUDGMENT

GENE CARTER, Chief Judge.

I. GUIDELINES COMPUTATION

A. Base Offense Level

The Court FINDS, there being no objection, as follows:

(a) A count charging conspiracy and a count charging any substantive offense that is the sole object of the conspiracy are, pursuant to the Guidelines, to be grouped together into a single group. Therefore, Counts I and II of the Indictment are grouped together pursuant to § 3D 1.2(b)(1), the Court FINDING that the offense of possession charged in Count II was the sole object of the conspiracy charged in Count I. Pursuant to § 2D1.4, the offense level for conspiracy is the same as if the object of the conspiracy had been completed.
(b) Base Offense Level: The applicable Base Offense Level, as determined from § 2D1.1(a)(3), is Level “32,” based upon the total amount of a substance containing cocaine involved in the instant offense being nine (9) kilograms, as the Court now FINDS, based in part upon the Government’s concession at the Presentence Conference on this issue.

The following findings and conclusions resolve disputed matters.

(c) Adjustment for Obstruction of Justice: The Court CONCLUDES that pursuant to § 3C1.1, Application Note 1(a), the Defendant’s offense level is [814]*814increased by two (2) levels, to Level “34,” because he maintained a false identity and attempted to destroy evidence, as the Court now FINDS.
(d) Adjustment for Role in the Offense: The Court FINDS that this Defendant is not subject to any upward adjustment in the Base Offense Level pursuant to § 3B1.1 for any aggravating role in the offense. The Court FURTHER FINDS that Defendant is not entitled to any downward adjustment in the Base Offense Level pursuant to § 3B1.2 because of any mitigating role played by Defendant in the offense and his request for a two (2) level reduction pursuant to § 3B1.2 as a “minor participant” is hereby DENIED.
(e) Career Offender Status: The Court FINDS that Defendant was over eighteen (18) years of age at the time of the instant offense, which is a controlled substance offense, and that he has three prior felony convictions for distribution of cocaine; namely, one (1) on February 10, 1987 (¶¶ 41 and 42) and two (2) on May 15, 1987 (¶¶1 43 and 44, these latter offenses being subject to being treated for purposes of determination of Criminal History Category as a single related offense under § 4B1.2(3) and App. Note 3 to § 4A1.2(a)(2)). After careful study, however, the Court CONCLUDES that all three convictions were imposed in “related” cases under § 4A1.2(a)(2) and § 4B 1.2(3). The Court therefore CONCLUDES that Defendant is not a Career Offender under § 4B1.1.

The Court stated the reasons for the denial of the Government’s request for a determination that Defendant is a “Career Offender” on the record at imposition of sentence as follows.

After careful study, the Court CONCLUDES that all three of the subject prior convictions were imposed in “related cases” under § 4A1.2(a)(2) and § 4B1.2(3). Section 4B1.1 says that a defendant is a Career Offender if:

(1) the defendant was at least 18 years old at the time of the instant offense;1
(2) the instant offense of conviction is a felony, that is, either a crime of violence or a controlled substance offense;2 and
(3) the defendant has at least two prior felony convictions of either a crime of violence or a controlled substance offense.3

Subsection (3) to § 4B1.2, which is entitled “Definitions of Terms Used in § 4B1.1,” states that:

The term ‘two prior felony convictions’ means
(A) The defendant committed the instant offense, subsequent to sustaining at least two felony convictions of either a crime of violence or a controlled substance offense ... and (B) the sentences for at least two of the aforementioned felony convictions are counted separately under the provisions of Part A of this chapter.

Here again, in connection with this definition of “two prior felony convictions,” the elements contained in sub-Part A of subsection (3) have been complied with, in that the instant offense was committed subsequent to sustaining two felony convictions of a controlled substance offense.

What is in dispute now is whether, under Part B of that definition, any two of'the three offenses the Court has referred to may be treated, for purposes of determination of Criminal History Category and “Career Offender Status,” as separate sentences. In order to determine that question, according to subsection (3), we turn to the provisions of Part A in an effort to determine whether under Part A any two of these convictions should be treated as separate sentences.

[815]*815We find in § 4A1.2, entitled “Definitions and Instructions for Computing Criminal History,” subsection (a)(2), the following language.

Prior sentences imposed in unrelated cases are to be counted separately. Pri- or sentences imposed in related cases are to be treated as one sentence for purposes of the criminal history....

Going next to Application Note 3 to that Guideline, § 4A1.2, entitled “Related Cases,” which sets out the criteria for determining whether cases are “related,” and which states:

Cases are considered related if they (1) occurred on a single occasion, (2) were part of a single common scheme or plan, or (3) were consolidated for trial or sentencing.

In applying these criteria, it is clear from what the record shows about these three offenses that they did not occur on the same occasion. The record shows that the offenses occurred on June 5, 1986, July 7, 1986, and August 19, 1986. So, these cases do not meet that criterion. That is a circumstance that militates in favor of treating them separately.

The second criterion is whether the cases were part of a single scheme or plan. We pass that for the nonce.

The third criterion is whether they were consolidated for trial or sentence. The record demonstrates in this case that there was a conviction obtained on May 15, 1987, as indicated in ¶ 43 of the Report, for the two so-called “Fairfax County offenses,” and that concurrent sentences were imposed in those cases. The Court CONCLUDES from its consideration of the contents of the Guidelines that these convictions were consolidated for sentencing within the meaning of criterion 3 of Application Note 3 to Guideline § 4A1.2. Thus, the “Fairfax County Offenses” should properly be treated, in the judgment of the Court, as consolidated for sentencing and be, therefore, treated as a single offense. They are in fact related under the language in application Note 3. They will be treated as a single offense.

The question then remains whether the so-called “Alexandria offense” of August 9, 1986 can be treated as separate from the unitary “Fairfax County offenses,” because, if that can be done, then there would still be, under the language of the Guidelines, two prior separate felonies for a controlled substance offense.

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Related

Sentence of probation
18 U.S.C. § 3561(a)(1)
Prohibited acts A
21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(A)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
747 F. Supp. 813, 1990 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13455, 1990 WL 153225, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-torres-med-1990.