Filed: Sep. 04, 2018
Latest Update: Mar. 03, 2020
Summary: UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 18-4140 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. AMBER GREEN, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, at Beckley. Irene C. Berger, District Judge. (5:13-cr-00257-1) Submitted: August 28, 2018 Decided: September 4, 2018 Before WYNN and FLOYD, Circuit Judges, and TRAXLER, Senior Circuit Judge. Vacated and remanded by unpublished per curiam opinion.
Summary: UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 18-4140 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. AMBER GREEN, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, at Beckley. Irene C. Berger, District Judge. (5:13-cr-00257-1) Submitted: August 28, 2018 Decided: September 4, 2018 Before WYNN and FLOYD, Circuit Judges, and TRAXLER, Senior Circuit Judge. Vacated and remanded by unpublished per curiam opinion. ..
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UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 18-4140
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
v.
AMBER GREEN,
Defendant - Appellant.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia,
at Beckley. Irene C. Berger, District Judge. (5:13-cr-00257-1)
Submitted: August 28, 2018 Decided: September 4, 2018
Before WYNN and FLOYD, Circuit Judges, and TRAXLER, Senior Circuit Judge.
Vacated and remanded by unpublished per curiam opinion.
Christian M. Capece, Federal Public Defender, David R. Bungard, Assistant Federal
Public Defender, Jonathan D. Byrne, Research & Writing Specialist, OFFICE OF THE
FEDERAL PUBLIC DEFENDER, Charleston, West Virginia, for Appellant. Michael B.
Stuart, United States Attorney, Miller Bushong, Assistant United States Attorney,
OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY, Beckley, West Virginia, for
Appellee.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
PER CURIAM:
Amber Green appeals the 24-month prison sentence the district court imposed
upon revocation of her term of supervised release. Green alleges that the district court
erred by improperly relying on her need for rehabilitative treatment in determining the
length of her sentence. See Tapia v. United States,
564 U.S. 319, 334-35 (2011). For the
reasons that follow, we vacate the district court’s judgment and remand for resentencing.
“A district court has broad discretion when imposing a sentence upon revocation
of supervised release.” United States v. Webb,
738 F.3d 638, 640 (4th Cir. 2013). “We
will affirm a revocation sentence if it is within the statutory maximum and is not plainly
unreasonable.”
Id. (internal quotation marks omitted). “When reviewing whether a
revocation sentence is plainly unreasonable, we must first determine whether it is
unreasonable at all.” United States v. Thompson,
595 F.3d 544, 546 (4th Cir. 2010). A
sentence is plainly unreasonable if it “run[s] afoul of clearly settled law.”
Id. at 548.
A revocation sentence is procedurally reasonable if the district court adequately
explains the sentence after considering the Sentencing Guidelines’ Chapter Seven policy
statements and the applicable 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) (2012) factors. United States v.
Slappy,
872 F.3d 202, 207 (4th Cir. 2017). “[A] revocation sentence is substantively
reasonable if the court sufficiently states a proper basis for its conclusion that the
defendant should receive the sentence imposed.”
Id. (alteration and internal quotation
marks omitted).
Although a sentencing court “commits no error by discussing the opportunities for
rehabilitation within prison or the benefits of specific treatment or training programs,” the
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court “may not impose or lengthen a prison sentence to enable an offender to complete a
treatment program or otherwise to promote rehabilitation.”
Tapia, 564 U.S. at 334-35.
As we later observed:
Tapia thereby drew a line between the consideration of a defendant’s
rehabilitative needs when determining the fact or length of imprisonment—
which is improper—and the consideration of the same when recommending
treatment options or the location of confinement—which is altogether
sound. Trial judges should thus make plain that a defendant’s rehabilitative
needs relate at most to recommended programs or locations—not to the fact
or length of imprisonment.
United States v. Bennett,
698 F.3d 194, 199 (4th Cir. 2012). The rule in Tapia applies to
both initial criminal sentences and sentences imposed upon revocation of supervised
release.
Id. at 197-98.
Having carefully reviewed the sentencing transcript, we conclude that the district
court procedurally erred by considering Green’s rehabilitative needs in determining the
length of her prison sentence. See
id. at 200. We further conclude that Green’s sentence
is plainly unreasonable, for it runs afoul of clearly settled law. Accordingly, we vacate
Green’s revocation sentence and remand for resentencing. We dispense with oral
argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the
materials before this court and argument would not aid the decisional process.
VACATED AND REMANDED
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