U.S. v. Maxfield

Federal 7th Circuit Court
Criminal Court
Sentencing
Citation
Case Number: 
No. 15-2339
Decision Date: 
February 11, 2016
Federal District: 
S.D. Ill.
Holding: 
Affirmed

Dist. Ct. did not err in sentencing defendant to 188-month term of incarceration on drug distribution charge, based in part on finding that defendant was career offender, even though defendant argued that he was entitled to downward departure because one prior conviction (i.e., residential burglary) used to establish his career offender status did not concern act of violence. Defendant’s residential burglary offense qualified as predicate felony for career offender status, and record showed that Dist. Ct. explicitly considered defendant’s downward departure argument, but found it to be without merit due to other factors favoring high-end guideline sentence. Moreover, defendant waived any argument that Dist. Ct.’s explanation for sentence was inadequate, where defendant’s counsel said “no” in response to Dist. Ct.’s inquiry as to whether any argument in mitigation had been overlooked.