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U.S. v. LaVallie, CR 09-56-GF-BMM-01. (2017)

Court: District Court, D. Montana Number: infdco20170623b18 Visitors: 15
Filed: May 24, 2017
Latest Update: May 24, 2017
Summary: FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATION TO REVOKE DEFENDANT'S SUPERVISED RELEASE JOHN JOHNSTON , Magistrate Judge . I. Synopsis The United States accused Mr. LaVallie of violating his conditions of supervised release by failing to complete sex offender treatment. He admitted to the violation. Mr. LaVallie's supervised release should be revoked. He should be incarcerated for six months and should remain on lifetime supervision after his release. II. Status Mr. LaVallie pleaded guilty in 2009 to Abusi
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FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATION TO REVOKE DEFENDANT'S SUPERVISED RELEASE

I. Synopsis

The United States accused Mr. LaVallie of violating his conditions of supervised release by failing to complete sex offender treatment. He admitted to the violation. Mr. LaVallie's supervised release should be revoked. He should be incarcerated for six months and should remain on lifetime supervision after his release.

II. Status

Mr. LaVallie pleaded guilty in 2009 to Abusive Sexual Contact. (Doc. 14.) He was sentenced to 36 months of incarceration and lifetime supervised release. (Doc. 22.) Mr. LaVallie's supervised release was revoked in July 2012 because he attended a church function where children were present without permission from his sex offender therapist and consumed alcohol on a separate occasion. (Docs. 24, 35.) Mr. LaVallie was incarcerated for nine months as a sanction for the violations. (Doc. 36.) He resumed supervised release on March 29, 2013. (Doc. 39.)

On February 11, 2014, his supervised release was revoked because he violated his conditions by failing to complete a sex offender treatment program. He was sentenced to six months of custody and lifetime supervision. (Doc. 48.) His current term of supervised release began on July 18, 2014. (Doc. 50.)

On June 16, 2016, United States District Judge Brian Morris revoked Mr. LaVallie's supervised release because he was terminated from sex offender treatment. (Doc. 61.) Judge Morris sentenced him to eight months in custody followed by lifetime supervised release. (Doc. 59.) His current term of supervised release began on January 12, 2017.

Petition

The United States Probation Office filed a petition on May 10, 2017, requesting revocation of Mr. LaVallie's supervised release. The petition alleged that Mr. LaVallie violated his supervised release by failing to complete sex offender treatment. (Doc. 63.) Based on the petition, Judge Morris issued a warrant for Mr. LaVallie's arrest. (Doc. 64.)

Initial appearance

Mr. LaVallie made an initial appearance before the undersigned on May 16, 2017. He was accompanied by Federal Defender R. Henry Branom. The United States was represented by Assistant United States Attorney Jared Cobell. Mr. LaVallie said he had read the petition and understood the allegations. Mr. LaVallie waived his right to a preliminary hearing. Both parties consented to have the revocation hearing before the undersigned.

Revocation hearing

Mr. LaVallie admitted to violating his conditions of supervised release. Mr. LaVallie's violation grade is C, his criminal history category is I, and the underlying violation is a Class A felony. He could be incarcerated for up to sixty months. The United States Sentencing Guidelines call for three to nine months imprisonment.

Mr. Branom requested a sentence at the middle of the guideline range. Mr. LaVallie exercised his right of allocution and stated he had a bad attitude when he first began supervision but now he wants to give life his best shot. Mr. Cobell requested a sentence at the middle of the guideline range.

Analysis

Mr. LaVallie's supervised release should be revoked because he admitted to a serious violation of the conditions. Mr. LaVallie should be ordered into custody for six months, with lifetime supervision to follow.

Conclusion

Mr. LaVallie was informed that the sanction described above would be recommended to United States District Judge Brian Morris, who will ultimately decide whether to revoke supervised release and what, if any, sanction to impose. Mr. LaVallie was advised that he has a right to object to the Findings and Recommendations within 14 days of their issuance, and that Judge Morris will not make his decision without considering Mr. LaVallie's objection if it is properly filed within the allotted time.

The undersigned makes the following FINDING:

Mr. LaVallie violated the conditions of his supervised release by failing to complete sex offender treatment.

The undersigned RECOMMENDS:

The district court enter the attached Judgement, revoking Mr. LaVallie's supervised release and committing Mr. LaVallie to the custody of the United States Bureau of Prisons for a term of imprisonment of six months, with lifetime supervised release to follow.

NOTICE OF RIGHT TO OBJECT TO FINDINGS & RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONSEQUENCES OF FAILURE TO OBJECT

Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1), the parties may serve and file written objections to these Findings and Recommendations within fourteen (14) days of the date entered as indicated on the Notice of Electronic Filing. As this deadline allows a party to act after the Findings and Recommendations is served, it falls under Fed.R.Civ.P. 6(d). Therefore, three (3) days are added after the period would otherwise expire.

A district judge will make a de novo determination of those portions of the Findings and Recommendations to which objection is made. The district judge may accept, reject, or modify, in whole or in part, the Findings and Recommendations. Failure to timely file written objections may bar a de novo determination by the district judge.

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT District of Montana

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Judgment in a Criminal Case v. (For Revocation of Probation or Supervised Release) SHERMAN JOSEPH LaVALLIE JR. Case No. CR 09-56-GF-BMM-01 USM No. 10593-046 R. Hank Branom _________________________________________________ Defendant's Attorney

THE DEFENDANT:

[✓] admitted guilt to violation of condition(s) as listed below of the term of supervision.

[] was found in violation of condition(s) ______________ after denial of guilt.

The defendant is adjudicated guilty of these violations:

Violation Number Nature of Violation Violation Ended 1 (Special condition) Failure to complete sex offender treatment 05/10/2017

The defendant is sentenced as provided in pages 2 through 5 of this judgment. The sentence is imposed pursuant to the Sentencing Reform Act of 1984.

[] The defendant has not violated condition(s) ____________ and is discharged as to such violation(s) condition.

It is ordered that the defendant must notify the United States attorney for this district within 30 days of any change of name, residence, or mailing address until all fines, restitution, costs, and special assessments imposed by this judgment are fully paid. If ordered to pay restitution, the defendant must notify the court and United States attorney of material changes in economic circumstances.

Last Four Digits of Defendant's Soc. Sec. No.: 0332 ________________________________________________________ Date of Imposition of Judgment Defendant's Year of Birth: 1989 ________________________________________________________ Signature of Judge City and State of Defendant's Residence: Great Falls, MT ____________________________________________________ Brian Morris United States District Judge ________________________________________________________ Name and Title of Judge ________________________________________________________ Date

IMPRISONMENT

The defendant is hereby committed to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons to be imprisoned for a total term of:

6 months

[] The court makes the following recommendations to the Bureau of Prisons:

[✓] The defendant is remanded to the custody of the United States Marshal.

[] The defendant shall surrender to the United States Marshal for this district:

[] at ____________________ [] a.m. [] p.m. on ____________________. [] as notified by the United States Marshal.

The defendant shall surrender for service of sentence at the institution designated by the Bureau of Prisons:

[] before 2 p.m. on ____________________________. [] as notified by the United States Marshal. [] as notified by the Probation or Pretrial Services Office.

RETURN

I have executed this judgment as follows:

Defendant delivered on _________________________ to ______________________________________ at ________________________________ with a certified copy of this judgment.

_________________________________________ UNITED STATES MARSHAL By _________________________________________ DEPUTY UNITED STATES MARSHAL

SUPERVISED RELEASE

Upon release from imprisonment, you will be on supervised release for a term of: Life

MANDATORY CONDITIONS

1. You must not commit another federal, state or local crime.

2. You must not unlawfully possess a controlled substance.

3. You must refrain from any unlawful use of a controlled substance. You must submit to one drug test within 15 days of release from imprisonment and at least two periodic drug tests thereafter, as determined by the court.

[] The above drug testing condition is suspended, based on the court's determination that you pose a low risk of future substance abuse. (check if applicable)

4. [✓] You must cooperate in the collection of DNA as directed by the probation officer. (check if applicable)

5. [] You must comply with the requirements of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (42 U.S.C. § 16901, et seq.) as directed by the probation officer, the Bureau of Prisons, or any state sex offender registration agency in where you reside, work, are a student, or were convicted of a qualifying offense. (check if applicable)

6. [] You must participate in an approved program for domestic violence. (check if applicable)

You must comply with the standard conditions that have been adopted by this court as well as with any other conditions on the attached page.

STANDARD CONDITIONS OF SUPERVISION

As part of your supervised release, you must comply with the following standard conditions of supervision. These conditions are imposed because they establish the basic expectations for your behavior while on supervision and identify the minimum tools needed by probation officers to keep informed, report to the court about, and bring about improvements in your conduct and condition.

1. You must report to the probation office in the federal judicial district where you are authorized to reside within 72 hours of your release from imprisonment, unless the probation officer instructs you to report to a different probation office or within a different time frame.

2. After initially reporting to the probation office, you will receive instructions from the court or the probation officer about how and when you must report to the probation officer, and you must report to the probation officer as instructed.

3. You must not knowingly leave the federal judicial district where you are authorized to reside without first getting permission from the court or the probation officer.

4. You must answer truthfully the questions asked by your probation officer.

5. You must live at a place approved by the probation officer. If you plan to change where you live or anything about your living arrangements (such as the people you live with), you must notify the probation officer at least 10 days before the change. If notifying the probation officer in advance is not possible due to unanticipated circumstances, you must notify the probation officer within 72 hours of becoming aware of a change or expected change.

6. You must allow the probation officer to visit you at any time at your home or elsewhere, and you must permit the probation officer to take any items prohibited by the conditions of your supervision that he or she observes in plain view.

7. You must work full time (at least 30 hours per week) at a lawful type of employment, unless the probation officer excuses you from doing so. If you do not have full-time employment you must try to find full-time employment, unless the probation officer excuses you from doing so. If you plan to change where you work or anything about your work (such as your position or your job responsibilities), you must notify the probation officer at least 10 days before the change. If notifying the probation officer at least 10 days in advance is not possible due to unanticipated circumstances, you must notify the probation officer within 72 hours of becoming aware of a change or expected change.

8. You must not communicate or interact with someone you know is engaged in criminal activity. If you know someone has been convicted of a felony, you must not knowingly communicate or interact with that person without first getting the permission of the probation officer.

9. If you are arrested or questioned by a law enforcement officer, you must notify the probation officer within 72 hours.

10. You must not own, possess, or have access to a firearm, ammunition, destructive device, or dangerous weapon (i.e., anything that was designed, or was modified for, the specific purpose of causing bodily injury or death to another person such as nunchakus or tasers).

11. You must not act or make any agreement with a law enforcement agency to act as a confidential human source or informant without first getting the permission of the court.

12. If the probation officer determines that you pose a risk to another person (including an organization), the probation officer may require you to notify the person about the risk and you must comply with that instruction. The probation officer may contact the person and confirm that you have notified the person about the risk.

13. You must follow the instructions of the probation officer related to the conditions of supervision.

U.S. Probation Office Use Only

A U.S. probation officer has instructed me on the conditions specified by the court and has provided me with a written copy of this judgment containing these conditions. For further information regarding these conditions, see Overview of Probation and Supervised Release Conditions, available at: www.uscourts.gov.

Defendant's Signature ___________________________________ Date ____________________

SPECIAL CONDITIONS OF SUPERVISION

1. All employment must be approved in advance in writing by the United States Probation Office. The defendant shall consent to third-party disclosure to any employer or potential employer.

2. The defendant shall submit to not more than six polygraph examinations per year as directed by United States Probation to assist in treatment, planning, and case monitoring. The defendant maintains the Fifth Amendment rights during polygraph examinations and may refuse to answer any incriminating questions. The defendant is to pay all or part of the cost of the examinations as directed by the United States Probation Office.

3. The defendant shall enter and successfully complete a sex offender treatment program. The defendant is to enter a program designated by, and until released by, the United States Probation Office. The defendant is to pay all or part of the costs of treatment as directed by the United States Probation Office.

4. The defendant shall not be allowed to do the following without prior written approval of United States Probation: knowingly reside in the home, residence, or be in the company of any child under the age of 18, with the exception of their own children; go to or loiter within 100 yards of school yards, parks, playgrounds, arcades, or other places primarily used by children under the age of 18.

5. The defendant shall not possess camera phones or electronic devices that could be used for covert photography without the prior written approval of the United States Probation Office.

6. The defendant shall not knowingly acquire, possess, or view any materials depicting sexually explicit conduct as defined in 18 U.S.C. § 2256(2)(A), if the materials, taken as a whole, are primarily designed to arouse sexual desire, unless otherwise approved by the supervising probation officer in conjunction with defendant's sex offender treatment provider. This condition applies to written stories, visual, auditory, telephonic, or electronic media, computer programs or services, and any visual depiction as defined in 18 U.S.C. § 2256(5).

The defendant shall not knowingly patronize any place where sexually explicit material or entertainment is the primary item of sale, such as adult bookstores, clubs, or Internet sites, unless otherwise approved by the supervising probation officer in conjunction with defendant's sex offender treatment provider. The defendant shall not utilize 900 or adult telephone numbers or any other sex-related numbers, or on-line chat rooms that are devoted to the discussion or exchange of sexually explicit materials as defined above.

7. The defendant shall submit his person, and any property, residence, vehicle, papers, computers (as defined in 18 U.S.C. § 1030(e)(1)), other electronic communications or data storage devices or media, to which the defendant has access, to a search at a reasonable time and a reasonable manner, with or without a warrant, by the United States Probation Office, or by any law enforcement officers upon the express direction of the United States Probation Office, with reasonable suspicion concerning a violation of a condition of supervision or unlawful conduct by the defendant. Failure to submit to search may be grounds for revocation. The defendant shall warn any other occupants, adults, and minors that the premises may be subject to searches pursuant to this condition. The defendant shall allow seizure of suspected contraband for further examination.

8. The defendant shall not knowingly possess or use any computer or other device with access to any on-line computer service without the prior written approval of the probation office. The defendant shall allow the probation office to make unannounced examinations of his computer, hardware, and software, which may include the retrieval and copying of all data from defendant's computer. The defendant shall allow the probation officer to install software to restrict the defendant's computer access or to monitor the defendant's computer access. The defendant shall not possess encryption or steganography software. The defendant shall provide records of all passwords, internet service, and user identifications (both past and present) to the probation office and immediately report changes. The defendant shall sign releases to allow the probation officer to access phone, wireless, internet, and utility records.

9. The defendant shall participate in and complete a program of substance abuse treatment as approved by the United States Probation Office, until the defendant is released from the program by the probation office. The defendant is to pay part or all of the cost of this treatment, as directed by the United States Probation Office.

10. The defendant shall abstain from the consumption of alcohol and shall not enter establishments where alcohol is the primary item of sale.

11. The defendant shall participate in substance abuse testing to include not more than 104 urinalysis tests, not more than 104 breathalyzer tests, and not more than 36 sweat patch tests annually during the period of supervision. The defendant shall pay all or part of the costs of testing as directed by the United States Probation Office.

12. The defendant shall not possess, ingest or inhale any toxic substances such as, but not limited to, synthetic marijuana and/or synthetic stimulants that are not manufactured for human consumption, for the purpose of altering his mental or physical state.

13. The defendant shall not purchase, possess, use, distribute or administer marijuana, or obtain or possess a medical marijuana card or prescription.

Source:  Leagle

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