U.S. v. Smith

Dist. Ct. did not err in sentencing defendant to 151-month term of incarceration on drug distribution charge, where Dist. Ct. also determined that defendant was career offender under section 4B1.1 of USSG based on his two prior convictions for aggravated fleeing from police. Ct. rejected defendant’s contention that instant within-guideline sentence was not presumptively reasonable because said guideline was not developed through use of Sentencing Commission’s traditional empirical approach, but rather through recognition of congressional mandate in 18 USC section 944(h). Ct. further noted that instant sentence was subjectively reasonable, where Dist. Ct. noted need to protect public from defendant’s propensities for violence and impulsive behavior.