Summary
stating that the court did not need to conduct a new sentencing hearing for a crack reduction
Summary of this case from U.S. v. FittsOpinion
CASE NO. 07-60078-CR-DIMITROULEAS.
April 1, 2008
ORDER
THIS CAUSE is before the Court on Defendant's March 18, 2008 Motion For Modification of Sentence ( 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2)) [DE-47] and the Court having requested a response from the Government [DE-48], but none having been received, the Court has reviewed the Court file and Pre-Sentence Investigation Report (PSIR), and finds as follows:
1. On March 27, 2007 Wright was indicted, and charged with Possession with Intent to Distribute 50 grams or more of Crack Cocaine and Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute in Excess of 50 grams of crack cocaine. [DE-1].
2. On June 28, 2007, the Defendant pled guilty to a lesser included offense; Possession with Intent to Distribute 5 grams or more of crack cocaine [DE-35] pursuant to a plea agreement. [DE-36].
3. On September 6, 2007, the Defendant was sentenced to 46 months in prison. [DE-42].
4. In her Motion for Modification of Sentence, the Defendant contends that she should get the benefit of the Sentencing Guidelines Commission's recent reduction in the scoring of crack cocaine. The PSIR held Wright accountable for 38.2 grams of crack cocaine. The retroactive change in the guidelines reduces the base level offense to 28, with a two level reduction for minor role, a two level decrease for the safety valve, a three level reduction for acceptance, and a Criminal History I, for a new range of 37-46 months. The Court agrees that it has discretion under 3582(c)(2) to reduce the sentence. The Court also agrees that it need not conduct a new sentencing hearing. Moreover, the Court has reviewed the Pre-Sentence Investigation Report and again considers a low end of the guidelines sentence to be reasonable and sufficient, as the court sentenced at the low end of the guidelines in 2007.
Under the original guidelines Wright's Total Offense Level was 23, with a Criminal History of I for a range of 46-57 months.
Based upon a Total Offense Level 21.
Wherefore, Defendant's Motion for Modification of Sentence [DE-47] is Granted. The sentence is reduced to 37 months in prison, with all previously imposed conditions of supervised release remaining the same. The Clerk will enter an Amended Judgment and Sentence. This order is subject to the prohibition contained in USSG 1B1.10(b)(2)(c).
DONE AND ORDERED.