Opinion
CRIMINAL 16-153 (JRT)
12-03-2024
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff, v. MICHAEL WAYNE WADENA, Defendant.
Katharine T. Buzicky, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, Lisa D. Kirkpatrick and William C. Mattessich, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, for Plaintiff. Michael Wayne Wadena, BOP Reg. No. 20612-041, pro se Defendant.
Katharine T. Buzicky, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, Lisa D. Kirkpatrick and William C. Mattessich, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, for Plaintiff.
Michael Wayne Wadena, BOP Reg. No. 20612-041, pro se Defendant.
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER DENYING DEFENDANT'S MOTION FOR COMPASSIONATE RELEASE AND MOTION TO AMEND THE PRESENTENCE INVESTIGATION REPORT
JOHN R. TUNHEIM UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Defendant Michael Wayne Wadena is serving a 180-month sentence after pleading guilty to being an armed career criminal in possession of a firearm. Wadena asks the Court to grant him compassionate release due to his medical conditions. Because Wadena fails to demonstrate that extraordinary and compelling reasons warrant reduction of his sentence, and because such a reduction would be inconsistent with the 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) sentencing factors and applicable policy statements, the Court will deny Wadena's Motion for Compassionate Release. The Court will also deny Wadena's Motions to Amend the Presentence Investigation Report, as it finds no compelling basis for its revision.
BACKGROUND
On August 5, 2016, Wadena pleaded guilty to being an armed career criminal in possession of a firearm. (Plea Agreement at 1, Docket No. 26.) Wadena was later sentenced to a 180-month term of imprisonment and five years of supervised release. (Sentencing J. at 2-3, May 11, 2017, Docket No. 48.) Wadena is currently incarcerated at a federal correctional institution in Greenville, Illinois. Inmate Locator, Fed. Bureau of Prisons, https://www.bop.gov/inmateloc (last visited Nov. 4, 2024).
After pleading guilty, Wadena appealed the Court's application of the Armed Career Criminal Act to his sentencing, but the Eighth Circuit affirmed. United States v. Wadena, 895 F.3d 1075, 1077 (8th Cir. 2018). Wadena then filed a motion to vacate his sentence under 28 U.S.C. § 2255. (Mot. Vacate, Feb. 25, 2019, Docket No. 68.) The Court denied that motion and declined to grant a certification of appealability. United States v. Wadena, No. 16-153, 2019 WL 3253065, at *2 (D. Minn. July 19, 2019).
Wadena later sought relief by filing three motions for compassionate release, all of which have been denied due to a lack of extraordinary or compelling reasons to reduce his sentence and because reducing his sentence would not comport with the 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) sentencing factors or the applicable Sentencing Commission statement. United States v. Wadena, No. 16-153, 2021 WL 2661437, at *1 (D. Minn. June 29, 2021); United States v. Wadena, No. 16-153, 2022 WL 4238260, at *1 (D. Minn. Sept. 14, 2022); (Order Den. Mot. Compassionate Release at 5-6, July 6, 2023, Docket No. 165.)
Wadena has now filed a fourth motion for compassionate release, asking the Court to reduce his sentence. (4th Mot. Compassionate Release, Mar. 27. 2024, Docket No. 179.) Wadena also asks the Court to amend his presentence investigation report. (1st Mot. Amend PSR, Mar. 7, 2024, Docket No. 176; 2nd Mot. Amend PSR, Mar. 26, 2024, Docket No. 178.)
DISCUSSION
I. COMPASSIONATE RELEASE
The Court may modify a defendant's sentence “after considering the factors set forth in section 3553(a) . . . if it finds that . . . extraordinary and compelling reasons warrant such a reduction . . . and that such a reduction is consistent with applicable policy statements issued by the Sentencing Commission.” 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A). The Sentencing Guidelines note that extraordinary and compelling reasons exist when a defendant is suffering from a terminal illness, is unable to provide self-care, is not receiving treatment for a condition requiring long-term or specialized medical care, or is at unreasonable risk during a public health emergency. USSG § 1B1.13(b)(1).
The Court has previously considered Wadena's medical conditions and found that, while serious, they did not present extraordinary and compelling reasons to reduce Wadena's sentence. Wadena, 2021 WL 2661437, at *1; (Order Den. Mot. Compassionate Release at 5.) Here, Wadena states that his recent diagnosis of chronic kidney disease and his abnormal thyroid test results, coupled with his existing medical conditions, warrant a reduction in his sentence. The Court again recognizes the serious nature of Wadena's conditions; however, there is no evidence that his conditions are terminal, that they substantially diminish his ability to provide self-care while incarcerated, that he is not receiving the specialized medical care he needs, or that he at risk during a public health emergency. Accordingly, the Court finds that Wadena's medical conditions do not present extraordinary and compelling reasons to reduce his sentence.
The Court also finds that a reduction of Wadena's sentence would not comport with the factors set forth in § 3553(a) and the applicable Sentencing Commission statement. 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a); USSG § 1B1.13. The Court has previously addressed why a reduction of Wadena's sentence would not align with the sentencing factors set forth in § 3553(a), and those considerations have not changed. (See Order Den. Mot. Compassionate Release at 5); Wadena, 2021 WL 2661437, at *2. The Court finds that reducing Wadena's term of imprisonment would create unwarranted sentencing disparities, minimize the seriousness of his crime, and pose a danger to others.
In sum, there are no extraordinary or compelling reasons that warrant a reduction of Wadena's sentence. Nor would such a reduction be consistent with the relevant sentencing factors and policy statements. The Court will therefore deny Wadena's Motion for Compassionate Release.
II. MOTIONS TO AMEND PRESENTENCE INVESTIGATION REPORT
The Court next considers Wadena's Motions to Amend the Presentence Investigation Report (“PSR”). Specifically, Wadena objects to the inclusion of escape conduct information in the PSR, contending that it is inaccurate and therefore mistakenly increased his criminal history score by two points. (1st Mot. Amend PSR at 2-3; 2nd Mot. Amend PSR at 1.) The Court will deny these motions for two reasons.
First, the inclusion of Wadena's escape conduct in the PSR did not affect the ultimate calculation of his criminal history score. The portion of the PSR that Wadena objects to enhanced his score because of his prior sentence of imprisonment exceeding one year and one month, pursuant to USSG § 4A1.1(a), not because of his escape conduct. (Revised PSR ¶ 48, May 17, 2017, Docket No. 51.)
Second, Wadena was sentenced to the mandatory minimum of fifteen years under the Armed Criminal Career Act. 18 U.S.C. § 924(e)(1). By definition, therefore, any alleged errors in the PSR could not have resulted in a lower sentence.
Therefore, the Court will also deny Wadena's Motions to Amend the PSR.
CONCLUSION
Wadena moves both for compassionate release and to amend the PSR. Because there are no extraordinary or compelling reasons that warrant a reduction of Wadena's sentence and because such a reduction would be inconsistent with the relevant sentencing factors and policy statements, the Court will deny the Motion for Compassionate Release. Because amendments to the PSR would have had no effect on the guideline range and the ultimate sentence, the Court will also deny the Motions to Amend the PSR.
ORDER
Based on the foregoing, and all the files, records, and proceedings herein, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:
1. Defendant's Motion for Compassionate Release [Docket No. 179] is DENIED; and
2. Defendant's Motions to Amend the Presentence Investigation Report [Docket Nos. 176, 178] is DENIED.