Opinion
No. 20-10298
05-21-2021
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. DAMON SYKES, Defendant-Appellant.
NOT FOR PUBLICATION
D.C. No. 4:10-cr-00607-JSW-2 MEMORANDUM Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
Jeffrey S. White, District Judge, Presiding Before: CANBY, FRIEDLAND, and VANDYKE, Circuit Judges.
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3.
Damon Sykes appeals from the district court's order denying his motion for compassionate release under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A)(i). We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291. Reviewing for abuse of discretion, see United States v. Aruda, 993 F.3d 797, 799 (9th Cir. 2021), we affirm.
Sykes contends the district court abused its discretion when, without first considering whether his proffered conditions of release were enough to assure the safety of the community, it found that the factors listed in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a), particularly the danger he posed to the community, did not support a sentence reduction. He argues that his proposed release plan, considered in the context of his positive behavior while in prison rather than his criminal history, warranted granting his motion.
The district court did not abuse its discretion in concluding that Sykes posed a danger to the community in light of the seriousness of his armed bank robbery offense, committed while on supervised release for a previous armed bank robbery conviction, and his prior convictions. The court properly weighed the § 3553(a) factors, including Sykes's rehabilitation and excellent custodial record, and did not abuse its discretion in concluding that the totality of the factors weighed against reduction. See United States v. Robertson, 895 F.3d 1206, 1213 (9th Cir. 2018) (a district court abuses its discretion only if its decision is illogical, implausible, or without support in the record).
AFFIRMED.