Filed: Sep. 09, 2011
Latest Update: Feb. 22, 2020
Summary: UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 11-4146 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. JOSHUA DAVID STARLING, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, at Durham. William L. Osteen, Jr., District Judge. (1:09-cr-00335-WO-1) Submitted: August 25, 2011 Decided: September 9, 2011 Before KEENAN and DAVIS, Circuit Judges, and HAMILTON, Senior Circuit Judge. Affirmed by unpublished per curiam
Summary: UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 11-4146 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. JOSHUA DAVID STARLING, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, at Durham. William L. Osteen, Jr., District Judge. (1:09-cr-00335-WO-1) Submitted: August 25, 2011 Decided: September 9, 2011 Before KEENAN and DAVIS, Circuit Judges, and HAMILTON, Senior Circuit Judge. Affirmed by unpublished per curiam ..
More
UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 11-4146
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
v.
JOSHUA DAVID STARLING,
Defendant - Appellant.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle
District of North Carolina, at Durham. William L. Osteen, Jr.,
District Judge. (1:09-cr-00335-WO-1)
Submitted: August 25, 2011 Decided: September 9, 2011
Before KEENAN and DAVIS, Circuit Judges, and HAMILTON, Senior
Circuit Judge.
Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
Ames C. Chamberlin, LAW OFFICES OF AMES C. CHAMBERLIN,
Greensboro, North Carolina, for Appellant. Ripley Rand, United
States Attorney, Michael F. Joseph, Assistant United States
Attorney, Greensboro, North Carolina, for Appellee.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
PER CURIAM:
Joshua David Starling pled guilty, pursuant to a
written plea agreement, to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and
oxycodone, 21 U.S.C. § 846 (2006), and possession of a firearm
in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense, 18 U.S.C.
§ 924(c)(1)(A) (2006). The district court sentenced Starling to
37 months’ imprisonment on the § 846 offense — the bottom of the
Sentencing Guidelines range — plus a consecutive 60-month
sentence on the § 924(c) offense. Starling noted a timely
appeal.
Starling’s sole argument on appeal is that his total
97-month sentence is unreasonable compared to his co-defendant’s
57-month sentence because they were guilty of the same conduct.
This court reviews a sentence for reasonableness, applying an
abuse of discretion standard. Gall v. United States,
552 U.S.
38, 51 (2007). In determining the reasonableness of a sentence,
we first consider whether the district court properly calculated
the defendant’s advisory Guidelines range, considered the 18
U.S.C. § 3553(a) (2006) factors, analyzed any arguments
presented by the parties, and sufficiently explained the
selected sentence.
Gall, 552 U.S. at 51. One of the factors
the sentencing court must consider is “the need to avoid
unwarranted sentence disparities among defendants with similar
records who have been found guilty of similar conduct . . . .”
2
18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)(6). However, “the kind of disparity with
which § 3553(a) is concerned is an unjustified difference across
judges (or districts) rather than among defendants to a single
case.” United States v. Pyles,
482 F.3d 282, 290 (4th Cir.
2007) (internal quotation and citation omitted); see also United
States v. Clark,
434 F.3d 684, 687 (4th Cir. 2006) (sole concern
of § 3553(a) is sentencing disparities among federal
defendants). In any event, Starling was convicted on the
§ 924(c) count, while his co-defendant was not. Moreover,
Starling’s criminal history placed him in Category V, whereas
his co-defendant’s placed her in Category I.
We find that Starling’s sentence is both procedurally
and substantively reasonable. The district court properly
calculated Starling’s sentencing range under the advisory
Guidelines, considered the relevant § 3553(a) factors, and
imposed a sentence at the bottom of the applicable sentencing
range. Starling cannot overcome the presumption of
reasonableness accorded his within-Guidelines sentence. See
Rita v. United States,
551 U.S. 338, 347 (2007).
Accordingly, we affirm. We dispense with oral
argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately
3
presented in the materials before the court and argument would
not aid the decisional process.
AFFIRMED
4