Johnson (Bad) News: Today, the Circuit decided Hill adverse to the defendant. It holds that Hobbs Act Robbery is “categorically” a “Crime of Violence” under 18 U.S.C.§ 924(c)(3). It also holds that Johnson does not apply to § 924(c): i.e., it does not “effectively render[] the ‘risk-of-force clause’” of § 924(c) “void for vagueness.” United … Read more
There were no published opinions today. In an unpublished opinion, United States v. Fernandini, No. 14-2203, the Second Circuit affirmed a within-Guidelines life sentence for the leader of a violent drug trafficking organization over procedural and substantive reasonableness challenges. Fernandini pleaded guilty to (i) conspiracy to traffic narcotics; (ii) using a firearm to commit murder … Read more
United States v. Echeverry, No. 10-2828-cr (2d Cir. August 19, 2011) (Winter, Parker, Chin, CJJ) (per curiam) The facts of this latest per curiam could have been pulled straight from a law school exam. During an ongoing narcotics conspiracy, Echeverry and his accomplice attempted to recover stolen narcotics from a third person; they possessed and … Read more
United States v. Tejada, No. 07-5289-cr (2d Cir. February 9, 2011) (Leval, Raggi, CJJ, Gleeson, CJ) The defendant here received a 120-month drug sentence and a consecutive 60-month § 924(c) sentence. On appeal, he argued that this was illegal under the court’s decisions in Williams and Whitley. And indeed it was. However, as this decision … Read more
United States v. Gardner, No. 08-4793-cr (2d Cir. March 10, 2010)(Feinberg, Katzmann, CJJ, Castel, DJ) 18 U.S.C. § 924(c)(1)(A) makes it a crime to possess a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Here, the defendants challenged the applicability of this section in their case, where they purchased firearms using drugs as payment. The … Read more
United States v. Parker, No. 08-4199-cr (2d Cir. August 14, 2009) (McLaughlin, Calabresi, Raggi, CJJ) Travious Parker received a 180-month sentence after a jury trial. This sentence comprised a 120-month drug mandatory minimum and mandatory sixty-month consecutive sentence on a § 924(c) count. On appeal, he argued that under United States v. Williams, 558 F.3d … Read more
United States v. Williams, No. 07-2436-cr (2d Cir. March 5, 2009) (Pooler, Hall, CJJ, Trager, DJ) Title 18 U.S.C. § 924(c) provides for consecutive mandatory minimum sentences for the use or possession of a firearm in connection with a drug offense or crime of violence except “to the extent that a greater minimum sentence is … Read more
United States v. Chavez, No. 05-4679-cr (2d Cir. December 8, 2008) (Kearse, Calabresi, Sack, CJJ) Jaime Chavez was convicted after a jury trial of a drug conspiracy and a § 924(c) offense, and faced a 50-year mandatory minimum: due to a prior conviction there was a 20-year minimum on the drug charge; and, because the … Read more
United States v. Desinor, No. 05-4500-cr (2d Cir. May 8, 2008) (Walker, Straub, Hall, CJJ) This prosecution arose from a murderous rivalry between two drug gangs. One, the “Cream Team” (footnote 1 of the opinion, which explains the derivation of this name, is a must-read), was populated largely by the defendants on trial. The rival … Read more