18-USC-3553a

51 cases — ← All topics

Case Title Lower Court Docketed Status Flags Tags Question Presented
25-6748 John Edwin Corn, Jr. v. United States Eleventh Circuit 2026-02-06 Pending IFP 18-USC-3553a criminal-sentencing mitigating-factors sentencing-guidelines substantive-reasonableness upward-variance Following this Court's decision s in United States v. Booker , 543 U.S. 220 (2005), and Gall v. United States , 552 U.S. 38 (2007), whether a district…
25A526 Martin Gutierrez-Barba v. United States Ninth Circuit 2025-11-06 Application 18-usc-3553a appellate-review circuit-split federal-sentencing preservation-of-error sentencing-error Question not identified.
25-5152 Zachary Charles Fowler v. United States Tenth Circuit 2025-07-21 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a advisory-range appellate-review criminal-sentencing sentencing-guidelines unwarranted-disparities Is a sentence that falls within the advisory guideline range categorically one that does not create unwarranted disparities among defendants with simi…
24-6047 Rodney Tyrone Henry v. United States Eighth Circuit 2024-11-27 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a accomplice-liability circuit-court-review criminal-procedure premeditation sentencing The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit's decision misapplied the established precedent regarding circumstances that could support a…
24A345 Ronald Robinson v. United States Eighth Circuit 2024-10-11 Presumed Complete 18-usc-3553a criminal-history eighth-circuit mitigating-factors sentencing-discretion sentencing-guidelines Question not identified.
24-50 Marlo Helmstetter v. United States Fifth Circuit 2024-07-17 Denied Response Waived 18-usc-3553a 18-usc-3582 compassionate-release concepcion-v-united-states district-court-discretion extraordinary-and-compelling-reasons extraordinary-reasons sentencing-commission sentencing-reduction statutory-interpretation Under 18 U.S.C. §3582(c)(1)(A), a defendant who has exhausted his administrative remedies is allowed to file his own motion to reduce his prison sente…
24-5058 Joseph Curtis Hubman v. United States Fourth Circuit 2024-07-11 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553(a)(2) 18-usc-3553a child-pornography criminal-history sentencing-guidelines sentencing-purposes upward-variance Whether an upward variance sentence nearly two years higher than recommended by the Sentencing Guidelines is greater than necessary to comply with the…
23-6629 Gilbert Dean Bicknell v. United States Seventh Circuit 2024-01-31 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a brady-materiality brady-v-maryland district-court-finding due-process federal-sentencing guidelines-determination judicial-discretion materiality prosecutorial-disclosure sentencing-information united-states-v-booker 1) Whether the materiality analysis from Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963), which has developed almost entirely around proceedings with binary out…
23-6336 Javier Garibay Mendoza, aka Javier Garibay Mendoza-Romero, aka Jose Mendoza-Romero v. United States Ninth Circuit 2023-12-22 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553(a) 18-usc-3553a circuit-split criminal-sentencing gall-v-united-states judicial-discretion procedural-obligations procedural-requirements sentencing-guidelines upward-variance Under Gall v. United States, 552 U.S. 38, 50 (2007), a district court imposing an outside-Guidelines sentence "must consider the extent of the deviati…
23-5357 Carlos Edwin Smith, Jr. v. United States Fourth Circuit 2023-08-15 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553(a) 18-usc-3553a adult-sentencing adverse-childhood-experiences criminal-procedure criminal-sentencing district-court judicial-discretion mitigation-factors relevancy sentencing-guidelines I. WHEN SENTENCING A DEFENDANT PURSUANT TO 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) DOES A DISTRICT COURT FULLY "CONSIDER THE FACTORS SET FORTH IN 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)" IF …
22-6560 Candido Gomez-Santacruz v. United States Fifth Circuit 2023-01-18 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a district-court-discretion federal-sentencing gall-v-united-states imprisonment-duration prior-term-of-imprisonment sentencing sentencing-factors sentencing-guidelines statutory-interpretation substantive-reasonableness In light of its nuanced, holistic approach to federal sentencing, whether a district court may, consistent with § 3553(a)'s plain text, treat the dura…
22-6429 Robert McKenna v. United States First Circuit 2022-12-30 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553 18-usc-3553a appellate-review criminal-history district-court-discretion due-process public-safety sentencing sentencing-factors sentencing-reasonableness I. Whether it was procedurally and substantively reasonable for the sentencing court to a) recite statutory sentencing rationale by rote recitation wi…
21-8118 Myron Dejuan Orr v. United States Eighth Circuit 2022-06-10 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-U.S.C.-3553(a) 18-U.S.C.-3582(c) 18-usc-3553a 18-usc-3582c abuse-of-discretion circuit-split extraordinary-and-or-compelling-reasons first-step-act sentencing-disparity 1. Whether the lower courts rulings amount to an An abuse of discretion when failing to consider That a disparity in sentencing amounts to an abuse …
21-8093 Albert Aiad-Toss v. United States Sixth Circuit 2022-06-08 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553 18-USC-3553a abuse-of-discretion criminal-procedure district-court-discretion procedural-reasonableness reasonableness sentencing sentencing-guidelines substantive-reasonableness supervised-release Whether Mr. Aiad-Toss's lifetime supervised release term was procedurally unreasonable because the district court failed to adequately explain its dec…
21-8030 Andre Marcus Buchanan v. United States Fourth Circuit 2022-06-01 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553(a) 18-usc-3553a career-offender criminal-procedure due-process plain-error plain-error-review reasonableness sentencing WHETHER MR. BUCHANAN'S SENTENCE IS UNREASONABLE BECAUSE IT IS GREATER THAN NECESSARY TO ACCOMPLISH THE GOALS OF 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a). WHETHER PLAIN …
21-6941 Tracy Vaughn v. United States Eighth Circuit 2022-01-21 Denied Relisted (3)IFP 18-usc-3553(a) 18-usc-3553a crack-cocaine criminal-resentencing criminal-sentencing district-court-discretion first-step-act sentencing-factors sentencing-reduction statutory-interpretation Whether, in deciding whether to impose a reduced sentence for a crack cocaine offense under Section 404(b) of the First Step Act, a district court mus…
21-6144 Johnnie Sims v. United States Fifth Circuit 2021-11-02 GVR Relisted (2)IFP 18-usc-3553 18-usc-3553a criminal-sentencing discretionary-review district-court-discretion first-step-act individualized-explanation sentence-reduction sentencing-factors statutory-interpretation (1) Are district courts required to consider the sentencing factors listed in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) when deciding whether to impose a reduced sentence u…
21-5348 James H. Bates v. United States Fifth Circuit 2021-08-12 Denied Response RequestedResponse WaivedRelisted (2)IFP 18-usc-3553a criminal-sentencing discretionary-review district-court-discretion first-step-act individualized-explanation section-404 sentencing-factors statutory-interpretation (1) Are district courts required to consider the sentencing factors listed in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) when deciding whether to impose a reduced sentence u…
21-5047 Michael Carter v. United States Fifth Circuit 2021-07-08 Denied Response RequestedResponse WaivedRelisted (2)IFP 18-usc-3553a criminal-procedure criminal-sentencing discretionary-review district-court-discretion first-step-act individualized-explanation sentence-reduction sentencing-factors statutory-interpretation (1) Are district courts required to consider the sentencing factors listed in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) when deciding whether to impose a reduced sentence u…
21-5030 Jonathan Mark Brinda v. United States Sixth Circuit 2021-07-07 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553(a) 18-usc-3553a criminal-sentencing district-court-discretion due-process excessive-sentence sentencing sentencing-considerations statutory-considerations statutory-interpretation supervised-release A. AFTER DETERMINING MR. BRINDA HAD VIOLATED THE TERMS OF HIS SUPERVISED RELEASE, THE DISTRICT COURT ERRED BY SENTENCING MR. BRINDA EXCESSIVELY BASED …
20-1479 Eddie Houston, Jr. v. United States Ninth Circuit 2021-04-21 GVR Amici (2)Relisted (2) 18-usc-3553(a) 18-usc-3553a criminal-resentencing criminal-sentencing first-step-act judicial-discretion reduced-sentence retroactive-sentencing sentencing-factors statutory-interpretation Whether a sentencing court must consider applicable sentencing factors codified in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) when deciding whether to impose a reduced sente…
20-6927 Anthony Freeney v. United States Fifth Circuit 2021-01-25 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a audio-recordings criminal-procedure due-process evidence-sufficiency jail-phone-calls jury-instructions jury-verdict sentencing standard-of-review sufficiency-of-evidence GUILTY VERDICT? DID THE DISTRICT COURT ERR IN ADMITTING AUDIO RECORDINGS OF MR. FREENEY'S JAIL PHONE CALLS? DID THE SENTENCE IMPOSED BY THE DISTRICT…
20-6442 Jonair Tyreece Moore v. United States Eighth Circuit 2020-11-25 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a circuit-split crack-cocaine discretionary-reduction district-court first-step-act racial-disparity sentencing-factors Whether a district court must consider the sentencing factors of 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) when determining whether to impose a reduced sentence for a crack…
20-6274 Fernando Juarez, aka Fernando Perez-Juarez v. United States Fifth Circuit 2020-11-10 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a appellate-review criminal-sentencing federal-sentencing judicial-discretion overarching-goal presumption-of-reasonableness reasonableness-standard rita-v-united-states sentencing-guidelines statutory-interpretation Whether the presumption of reasonableness for within-guidelines sentences approved in Rita v. United States, 551 U.S. 338 (2007) has proved incompatib…
20-5740 Edward Mahan v. United States Fifth Circuit 2020-09-17 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-USC-3553a appeal criminal-procedure downward-adjustment drug-offense due-process government-misconduct plea-agreement safety-valve sentencing sentencing-guidelines DID THE DISTRICT COURT ERR BY ALLOWING THE GOVERNMENT TO VIOLATE THE PLEA AGREEMENT? DID THE DISTRICT COURT ERR BY DENYING MR. MAHAN'S OBJECTION TO T…
19-8683 Edgardo Grande v. United States Fifth Circuit 2020-06-12 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a appeal-waiver fairness-integrity-public-reputation judicial-proceedings plea-agreement sentencing sentencing-factors substantial-rights unconscionability unconscionable-contract 1. Whether the waiver of appeal rights contained in the Plea Agreement is unenforceable since the Plea Agreement is invalid because it is an unconscio…
19-8569 Brandon S. Wilson v. United States Seventh Circuit 2020-05-29 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553(a) 18-usc-3553a abuse-of-discretion criminal-procedure district-court-discretion due-process procedural-error sentencing sentencing-reasonableness supervised-release 1. Is Mr. Wilson's sentence procedurally and substantively infirm because the district court failed to consider the factors under 18 USC §3553(a) or o…
19-1260 Andrew Demma v. United States Sixth Circuit 2020-04-30 Denied Response RequestedResponse WaivedRelisted (3) 18-usc-3553a appeals-court child-pornography circuit-split discretion gall-v-united-states judicial-discretion kimbrough-v-united-states policy-disagreement sentencing-guidelines substantive-reasonableness (1) Whether the discretion recognized under Kimbrough v. United States for a district court to vary based on a policy disagreement applies to the chil…
19-7918 Patrick Harris v. United States Sixth Circuit 2020-03-10 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a child-pornography criminal-sentencing district-court enhancement-factors excessive-sentence sentencing-discretion sentencing-enhancements sentencing-guidelines statutory-considerations I. DID THE DISTRICT COURT ERR WHEN IT FOUND ENHANCEMENT FACTORS LISTED IN U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(b)(2), (b)(3), (b)(4), (b)(6) AND (b)(7)(D) APPROPRIATE IN …
19-7470 Agustin Martinez-Lopez v. United States Fifth Circuit 2020-01-29 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a appellate-review appellate-standard circuit-split criminal-procedure criminal-sentencing criminal-sentencing,appellate-review,18-usc-3553(a federal-sentencing gall-v-united-states judicial-discretion sentencing sentencing-factors sentencing-review statutory-interpretation substantive-reasonableness L When conducting their substantive-reasonableness review of sentences, can appellate courts reweigh the sentencing factors in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a), as…
19-7107 Joseph Thor Perkins v. United States Eighth Circuit 2019-12-30 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a 3553(a)-factors abuse-of-discretion booker-v-united-states criminal-sentencing downward-variance federal-sentencing-procedure gall-v-united-states judicial-discretion sentencing-discretion sentencing-guidelines statutory-interpretation Whether a sentencing court can abuse its discretion by not varying downward further based on this Court's decisions mandating that a sentencing court …
19-7105 Miguel Jilberto Vazquez-Chavarria v. United States Fifth Circuit 2019-12-30 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a abuse-of-discretion appellate-review criminal-sentencing due-process judicial-discretion remand sentencing-factors sentencing-guidelines sentencing-review statutory-interpretation substantive-reasonableness 1. Whether substantive reasonableness review requires or permits the courts of appeals to "reweigh the [18 U.S.C. §3553(a)] factors"? SUBSIDIARY QUES…
19-7092 Laforest Carmichael, aka LaForrest Carmichael v. United States Eleventh Circuit 2019-12-30 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553(a) 18-usc-3553a circuit-split mandatory-revocation sentencing-factors statutory-maximum substantive-reasonableness supervised-release Should this Court resolve the current circuit split over whether a sentencing judge must consider the 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) sentencing factors when impo…
19-665 John Doe v. United States Fifth Circuit 2019-11-25 Denied Response WaivedRelisted (2) 18-usc-3553 18-usc-3553a criminal-procedure district-court district-court-discretion federal-rules-of-criminal-procedure rule-35 rule-35b sentence-reduction sentencing sentencing-factors substantial-assistance 1. May a district court deny a government's Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 35(b) motion for reduction of sentence based on substantial assistance …
19-6663 Jose Hernandez-Martinez, et al. v. United States Ninth Circuit 2019-11-18 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a 18-usc-3582c2 28-usc-991b 28-usc-994 due-process equal-protection guidelines-policy rational-basis-scrutiny retroactive-amendment retroactive-sentence-reduction sentence-reduction sentencing-commission sentencing-commission-authority sentencing-reform-act Is the Sentencing Commission's delegated authority over retroactive sentence reduction proceedings constrained by the general purposes of the Commissi…
19-6650 Fidel Rios, Jr. v. United States Eighth Circuit 2019-11-15 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a 8th-circuit criminal-procedure criminal-sentencing district-court downward-variance guidelines judicial-discretion life-circumstances sentencing sentencing-factors sentencing-guidelines u-s-code Whether the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals and District Court for the Southern District of Iowa failed to adequately consider the sentencing factors set…
19-6288 Ron Christopher Whitley v. United States Fourth Circuit 2019-10-17 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553(a) 18-usc-3553a appellate-review criminal-procedure criminal-sentencing drug-case drug-offense drug-offenses judicial-discretion proportionality-review sentencing-departure sentencing-factors sentencing-guidelines Whether the 156-month sentence is greater than necessary to comply with the purposes of sentencing under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) where the district court …
19-6205 Ruben Navarrete-Felix v. United States Ninth Circuit 2019-10-09 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553(a) 18-usc-3553a abuse-of-discretion criminal-procedure criminal-sentencing due-process judicial-policy recidivism sentencing-discretion sentencing-factors Is it an abuse of discretion to sentence a recidivist pursuant to a blanket policy of always imposing a longer sentence than the defendant previously …
19-5778 Hosam Maher Husein Smadi v. United States Fifth Circuit 2019-09-03 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a constitutional-rights due-process effective-counsel equal-protection manifest-injustice plea-agreement right-to-effective-counsel rule-11 sentencing sentencing-guidelines supreme-court-precedent 1). Whether Smadi in this Case would suffer a manifest injustice and an extreme hardship by serving several extra years in prison absent such relief i…
19-5412 Jean Claude Phillip McKenzie v. United States Sixth Circuit 2019-07-31 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553(a) 18-usc-3553a 6th-circuit appellate-review criminal-procedure criminal-sentencing district-court history-and-characteristics judicial-discretion nature-and-circumstances sentencing sentencing-factors sentencing-guidelines sentencing-variance WHETHER THE SIXTH CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS SUFFICIENTLY DETERMINED THAT THE DISTRICT COURT'S UPWARD VARIANCE IN ITS SENTENCING OF PETITIONER BY 31 MON…
19-5125 Francisco Gallegos-Lopez v. United States Ninth Circuit 2019-07-09 Denied Response RequestedResponse WaivedRelisted (2)IFP 18-usc-3553a 3553(a)-factors abuse-of-discretion appellate-review circuit-split criminal-procedure judicial-discretion preservation-of-error procedural-error sentencing sentencing-recommendation statutory-factors Does urging a sentencing recommendation lower than that ultimately imposed, and grounded in the statutory factors in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a), suffice to p…
18-9803 Salvador Galvan v. United States Ninth Circuit 2019-06-27 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a appeal criminal-procedure criminal-sentencing district-court-discretion due-process guidelines procedural-error sentencing sentencing-guidelines ussg-2b1.1 victim victim-definition victim-impact Whether, in a case involving embezzlement from a municipality, it is procedural error for a district court to consider every resident of the city a vi…
18-9534 Femi Alexander Mewase v. United States Fifth Circuit 2019-06-05 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a confrontation-clause criminal-procedure criminal-procedure-jury-selection due-process federal-rules-of-evidence jury-selection sentencing Whether the Fifth Circuit erred by affirming the improper removal of Juror 20. Whether the Fifth Circuit erred by upholding the admission of evidence…
18-8352 Lino Hernandez v. United States Ninth Circuit 2019-03-08 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553(a) 18-usc-3553a 18-usc-3582(c)(2) 3553(a)-factors 3582(c)(2)-motion amendment-782 amendment-782-788 criminal-sentencing district-court-discretion procedural-reasonableness sentence-disparity sentence-reduction sentencing-disparities sentencing-error sentencing-guidelines statutory-interpretation Whether the District Court Committed substantive error when failed to impose a sentence that was sufficient but not greater than necessary to comply w…
18-8328 Maritza Burgueno-Gonzalez v. United States Ninth Circuit 2019-03-07 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553(a) 18-USC-3553a criminal-procedure criminal-sentencing district-court district-court-discretion federal-sentencing sentencing-considerations sentencing-disparities smuggling smuggling-scheme unwarranted-sentences 1. Whether the district court violated 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)'s rule that a district court must consider unwarranted sentencing disparities when it refus…
18-7918 Rutilio Hernandez v. United States Fifth Circuit 2019-02-12 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553 18-usc-3553(a) 18-usc-3553a 18-usc-924 abuse-of-discretion constitutional-law criminal-procedure district-court district-court-discretion sentence-reduction sentencing-error sentencing-guidelines statutory-directive statutory-interpretation substantive-error sufficient-but-not-greater-than-necessary I. Whether the District Court Committed substantive error when failed to impose a sentence that was sufficient but not greater than necessary to compl…
18-7863 Jeffrey Burris v. United States Fourth Circuit 2019-02-08 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a abuse-of-discretion criminal-sentencing due-process firearms firearms-possession reasonableness reasonableness-review sentencing sentencing-guidelines statutory-interpretation unregistered Whether a sixty-month sentence for the simple possession of unregistered firearms, without any evidence suggesting the defendant was doing anything il…
18-7227 Antonio Ledon Jones v. United States Eleventh Circuit 2019-01-04 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553 18-usc-3553a 18-usc-3553a6 due-process eleventh-circuit fifth-amendment judicial-review sentencing sentencing-disparities unwarranted-sentence-disparities 1. Whether the Eleventh Circuit decided the opinion below based on inaccurate information and thereby betrayed the due process guarantees of the Fifth…
18-6327 Rolando Humphrey v. United States Fifth Circuit 2018-10-16 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553 18-usc-3553a criminal-procedure criminal-sentencing due-process federal-sentencing judicial-determination judicial-discretion jury-role jury-trial sentencing-discretion sentencing-guidelines sentencing-guidelines-18-usc-3553 statutory-minimum 1. Whether district courts may determine without the aid of a jury that a sentence above the statutory minimum is "not greater than necessary" to achi…
18-6266 Ivan Rivera-Solis v. United States Fifth Circuit 2018-10-10 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553a appellate-review circuit-split criminal-sentencing gall-standard gall-v-united-states sentencing-factors sentencing-review standard-of-review substantive-reasonableness When conducting their substantive reasonableness review of sentences, can appellate courts reweigh the sentencing factors in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a), as t…
18-5828 Adolfo Lopez-Garcia v. United States Seventh Circuit 2018-08-29 Denied Response WaivedIFP 18-usc-3553(a) 18-usc-3553a 18-usc-3582(c)(2) 3582c-motion amendment-782 criminal-procedure criminal-sentencing district-court procedural-reasonableness sentence-reduction sentencing-discretion sentencing-error sentencing-guidelines statutory-directive statutory-interpretation substantive-error substantive-reasonableness sufficient-but-not-greater-than-necessary Whether the District Court Committed substantive error when failed to impose a sentence that was sufficient but not greater than necessary to comply w…