In U.S. v. Chitwood, the defendant pled guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, and was sentenced to 188 month because the federal district court found Chitwood was a career offender under sentencing guideline §4B1.1(a). Under this provision a defendant with two or more drug offense or a crime…
Pertuz-Pertuz pleaded guilty to a drug trafficking on the high seas. Specifically, his offense involved a conspiracy to distribute five or more kilograms of cocaine while aboard a vessel subject to the U.S. jurisdiction, in violation of Title 46 U.S.C. §70503(a)(1). In U.S. v. Pertuz-Pertuz, the 11th Circuit said the…
Sanders was convicted of distributing cocaine after he was stopped by Georgia State Patrol driving a tractor trailer containing 153 kilograms of cocaine. After giving consent to the search of the truck, officers found cocaine hidden in the trailer hidden inside a pallet of rotting cabbage. At trial, the jury…
In this appeal Juanita Davenport challenged a final order of criminal forfeiture of $214,980 seized from a safety deposit box. In U.S. v. Davenport, the defendant and her codefendants were charged in the indictment with participating in a drug conspiracy. In addition, Davenport was charged with making a false statement…
In U.S. v. Miranda, defendant Miranda negotiated with an undercover agent to purchase some firearms in exchange for a quantity of heroin. Miranda expressed a strong desire to obtain the firearms right away and he and the undercover agents agreed to exchange 4 handguns and 3 machine guns for 57…
In U.S. v Webb, the defendant pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. He was arrested when he was stopped by police en route to meet an informant for a drug purchase. Police found cash and a 9mm semiautomatic handgun. Webb was charged with attempted drug possession…
In U.S. v. Perez, the defendants were charged with a Hobbs Act conspiracy for planning to rob a fictitious cocaine stash house in Miami. The Hobbs Act makes it a federal crime to conspire to commit a robbery that has some affect on interstate commerce. They were also charged with…
On October 4, 2011, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals vacated U.S. v. Rojas decision. A majority of the judges on the Court have voted to rehear the case en banc. This means that the issue of whether the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 (FSA) applies to defendants sentenced after…