JOHN JOHNSTON, Magistrate Judge.
The United States accused Chanler Chaze Whitegrass of violating his conditions of supervised release by 1) failing to maintain employment, 2) failing to notify the probation office of a change in address, 3) consuming alcohol, 4) failing to maintain employment, and 5) failure to follow the instructions of the probation office. He admitted to violations 2 through 5. Mr. Whitegrass's supervised release should be revoked. He should be sentenced to six months in custody, with twenty-eight months of supervised release to follow.
On September 24, 2015, United States District Judge Brian Morris sentenced Mr. Whitegrass to twenty-two months in custody, with thirty-six months of supervised release to follow, after he pleaded guilty to Strangulation. (Doc. 27). Mr. Whitegrass began his original term of supervised release on December 8, 2016.
On July 6, 2017, a non-compliance hearing was held, alleging that Mr. Whitegrass had violated the conditions of his supervision by failing to report for random drug testing, failure to report for substance abuse treatment, failure to maintain employment, failure to notify his probation officer of a change in employment, association with a convicted felon, a citation for having an open container and consuming alcohol on four separate occasions. (See Doc. 32). Mr. Whitegrass admitted to these violations, and on July 17, Judge Morris ordered a modification of conditions to include three months of electronic monitoring supervision. (Doc. 31).
On October 30, 2017, the Court revoked Mr. Whitegrass's supervised release based on Mr. Whitegrass's failure to report for substance abuse testing, failure to report, and failure to notify his probation officer of a change in residence, and sentenced him to two months custody with thirty-four months of supervised release to follow. (Doc. 42). Mr. Whitegrass began his current term of supervised release on October 31, 2017.
On May 10, 2018, the Probation Office filed a Petition asking the Court to revoke Mr. Whitegrass's supervised release. The petition alleged that on February 6, 2018, Mr. Whitegrass was terminated from FT Soutions due to poor performance and allegedly throwing a hammer at his supervisor. The petition further alleged that on May 3, 2018, Mr. Whitegrass's probation officer attempted to visit him at his listed address, but that Mr. Whitegrass had moved out without informing the officer. Also, the petition alleged that on May 4, 2018, Mr. Whitegrass was found intoxicated and asleep behind a Conoco Travel Post, and that his BAC was .247. The petition also alleged that on May 7, 2018, Mr. Whitegrass was terminated from his employment at Empire Roofing due to unexcused absences. Finally, the petition alleged that on May 7, 2018, Mr. Whitegrass failed to appear at the probation office as instructed. (Doc. 44). Based on the petition, Judge Morris issued a warrant for Mr. Whitegrass's arrest. (Doc. 45).
Mr. Whitegrass appeared before the undersigned on July 10, 2018, in Great Falls, Montana. Federal Defender Hank Branom accompanied him at the initial appearance. Assistant United States Attorney Ryan Weldon represented the United States.
Mr. Whitegrass said he had read the petition and understood the allegations. He waived the preliminary hearing, and the parties consented to proceeding before the undersigned.
Mr. Whitegrass admitted to the violations as set forth in violations 2 through 5 in the petition. The United States did not put on any evidence in support of violation 1, which Mr. Whitegrass denied, and did not meet its burden with respect to violation 1. The admitted violations are serious and warrant revocation of his supervised release.
Mr. Whitegrass's violation grade is Grade C, his criminal history category is I, and his underlying offense is a Class C felony. He could be incarcerated for up to twenty-four months. He could be ordered to remain on supervised release for thirty-four months, less any custody time imposed. The United States Sentencing Guidelines call for three to nine months in custody.
Mr. Whitegrass's supervised release should be revoked because he admitted violating its conditions. Mr. Whitegrass should be sentenced to six months custody, with credit for time served, followed by twenty-eight months of supervised release. This sentence would be sufficient given the seriousness of the violations but would not be greater than necessary. The Court further recommends that Mr. Whitegrass serve his term of custody in Federal Correctional Institution, Sandstone, Minnesota.
Mr. Whitegrass was advised that the above sentence would be recommended to Judge Morris. The Court reminded him of his right to object to these Findings and Recommendations within 14 days of their issuance. The undersigned explained that Judge Morris would consider his objection, if it is filed within the allotted time, before making a final determination on whether to revoke his supervised release and what, if any, sanction to impose.
The undersigned
The undersigned
The parties may serve and file written objections to the Findings and Recommendations within 14 days of their entry, as indicated on the Notice of Electronic Filing. 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1). A district judge will make a de novo determination regarding any portion 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, and may waive the right to appear and allocute before a district judge.
[✓] admitted guilt to violation of condition(s)
[] was found in violation of condition(s) ________________ after denial of guilt.
The defendant is adjudicated guilty of these violations:
The defendant is sentenced as provided in pages 2 through
[✓] The defendant has not violated condition(s)
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.
The defendant is hereby committed to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons to be imprisoned for a total term of:
six (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:
[] The defendant shall surrender for service of sentence at the institution designated by the Bureau of Prisons:
I have executed this judgment as follows:
Defendant delivered on _______________________ to _______________________________ at ____________________ with a certified copy of this judgment.
Upon release from imprisonment, you will be on supervised release for a term of:
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.
4. [] You must make restitution in accordance with 15 U.S.C. §§ 3663 A or any other statute authorizing a sentence of restitution. (check if applicable)
5. [✓] You must cooperate in the collection of DNA as directed by the probation officer. (check if applicable)
6. [] You must comply with the requirements of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (U.S.C. § 20901, 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)
[] 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.
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.
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.
1. The defendant shall participate in and successfully 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 officer. The defendant is to pay part or all of the cost of this treatment, as directed by the United States Probation Office.
2. The defendant shall abstain from the consumption of alcohol and shall not enter establishments where alcohol is the primary item of sale.
3. The defendant shall participate in substance abuse testing to include not more than 365 urinalysis tests, not more than 365 breathalyzer tests, and not more than 36 sweat patch applications 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.
4. The defendant shall not possess, ingest or inhale any toxic substances such as, but not limited to, synthetic marijuana, kratom, and/or synthetic stimulants such as bath salts and spice, that are not manufactured for human consumption, for the purpose of altering their mental or physical state.
5. The defendant shall not purchase, possess, use, distribute or administer marijuana, or obtain or possess a medical marijuana card or prescription.
6. The defendant shall submit their person, residence, place of employment, vehicles, and papers, to a search, with or without a warrant by any probation officer based on reasonable suspicion of contraband or evidence in violation of a condition of release. Failure to submit to search may be grounds for revocation. The defendant shall warn any other occupants that the premises may be subject to searches pursuant to this condition. The defendant shall allow seizure of suspected contraband for further examination.
7. The defendant shall have no contact with victim in the instant offense.
8. The defendant shall comply with Violent Offender Registration requirements for convicted offenders in any state in which the defendant resides.
9. The defendant shall participate in a program for mental health treatment as deemed necessary by the United States Probation Officer, until such time as the defendant is released from the program by the probation officer. The defendant is to pay part or all of the cost of this treatment, as directed by the United States Probation Office.
