Federal 7th Circuit Court
Criminal Court
Sentencing
Defendant was entitled to new sentencing hearing after Dist. Ct. had sentenced defendant to 48-month term of incarceration on charge of conspiracy to use unauthorized credit and gift card accounts, where record showed that Dist. Ct., in comparing defendant's conduct to Mariel boat people, improperly factored defendant's Cuban national origin into his sentence. Moreover, Dist. Ct. failed to explain how defendant's criminal history both outweighed evidence of his lesser participation in criminal scheme and supported instant upward departure of instant 33 to 41-month sentencing guideline.