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First Circuit: Failure to Prove a Prior Conviction Was a ‘Controlled Substance Offense’ Under the Guidelines Requires Resentencing

Loaded on April 12, 2019 by Douglas Ankney published in Criminal Legal News May, 2019, page 18
Filed under: War on Drugs, Sentencing. Location: United States of America.

by Douglas Ankney

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit held that when the Government fails to prove a prior conviction was for a controlled substance as defined by U.S. Sentencing Guideline (“U.S.S.G.”) 4B1.2(b), the defendant is entitled to resentencing.

Jose Martinez-Benitez pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm ...

 

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More from this issue:

  1. News in Brief
  2. Florida Deputy Falsifies Drug Field-Test Results, Freeing 11 From Jail, by Edward Lyon
  3. Police Not Required to Protect; Are They Required to Serve?, by Matthew Clarke
  4. Delaware Supreme Court: ‘The Sixth Amendment Demands More Than the Presence the Morning of Trial of a Warm Body With a Law Degree’, by Douglas Ankney
  5. Deadly Force Mindset as Justifiable Defense Questioned, by Kevin Bliss
  6. L.A. County Wipes Out Almost $90 Million in Debt for Juvenile Detention Fees, by Dale Chappell
  7. Federal Judge Rules Massachusetts Law Banning Secretly Recording Police in Public Is Unconstitutional, by Dale Chappell
  8. Fourth Circuit Holds 18 U.S.C. § 924(c)(3)(B) is Unconstitutional, by Douglas Ankney
  9. In Washington State, a Man’s Home Is No Longer His Castle, by Edward Lyon
  10. New Jersey Board Finds Suspending Drivers’ Licenses Because of Failure to Pay Court Fines Doesn’t Work, by Dale Chappell
  11. Fourth Circuit: District Court Must Provide Rationale When Denying Motion for § 3582(c)(2) Sentence Reduction, by Douglas Ankney
  12. D.C. Circuit Holds Attempted Drug Offenses Do Not Count Toward Career Criminal Designation, by Matthew Clarke
  13. Pennsylvania Supreme Court Rules as a Matter of 1st Impression That Mother’s Use of Opioids During Pregnancy Not Child Abuse, by Chad Marks
  14. Fourth Circuit: Unreasonable Post-Seizure Delay in Obtaining Warrant Requires Suppression of Evidence, by Douglas Ankney
  15. California Supreme Court Rules That Defense Counsel Can’t 
Agree to Stipulation That’s Tantamount to Guilty Plea Without Voluntary and Intelligent Waiver by Defendant, by Derek Gilna
  16. Creation of Prosecutorial Watchdog in New York Spotlights Distinction Between Misconduct and Unfair Conduct, by Michael Berk
  17. Georgia Supreme Court Announces Statute Mandating Lifetime GPS Monitoring of ‘Sexually Dangerous Predator’ Even After Completion of Sentence Is Facially Unconstitutional, by Douglas Ankney
  18. Fifth Circuit Rules Miscalculation of Guidelines Sentencing 
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  19. Prosecutors Have the Power to Stop Bad Roadside Drug Tests From Ruining People’s Lives, by Sagiv Galai
  20. Former New Jersey Police Chief Faces Rare Federal Hate Crime Charges
  21. Cops Seize Almost $150,000 from Black Musician for Not Using His Turn Signal, by Dale Chappell
  22. Ninth Circuit Vacates a Sentence Imposed for Violation of Supervised Release Because the District Court Failed to Disclose to the Defendant the Probation Officer’s Confidential Sentencing Recommendations
  23. Fourth Circuit: South Carolina Conviction for Assaulting, Wounding, or Beating Officer While Resisting Arrest Is Not Predicate Violent Felony Conviction Under ACCA, by Douglas Ankney
  24. Legal Aid Society Counters NYC Police Misconduct With New Database
  25. Florida Cop Found Guilty of Killing Stranded Driver, a First in 30 Years in State
  26. Second Circuit: Government’s Misleading Disclosure Warrants New Trial, by Douglas Ankney
  27. Facial Recognition Gives Police Easier Access to Cellphones, by Dale Chappell
  28. Why Brady Lists Still Don’t Work, by Douglas Ankney
  29. Abolishing the Death Penalty Leads to Decline in Murders, by Douglas Ankney
  30. Fourth Circuit Reverses Dismissal of Habeas and Remands for Hearing on Actual Innocence Claim, by Douglas Ankney
  31. Federal Judge Denies Qualified Immunity for Cops Who Detained Motorist for Giving Them the Finger, by Dale Chappell
  32. Seventh Circuit: Failure to Disclose that Star Witness Was Hypnotized is 'Brady' Violation, by Douglas Ankney
  33. Georgia Supreme Court: Statutes Permitting a Defendant’s Refusal to Submit to Breath Tests to Be Admitted into Evidence Are Unconstitutional, by Douglas Ankney
  34. Pennsylvania Supreme Court Retroactively Applies Birchfield, Holding that Enhanced Criminal Penalties for Refusing Warrantless Blood Tests are Unconstitutional, by Douglas Ankney
  35. First Circuit: Failure to Prove a Prior Conviction Was a ‘Controlled Substance Offense’ Under the Guidelines Requires Resentencing, by Douglas Ankney
  36. Fourth Circuit Announces Reasonably Foreseeable Acts of Co-Conspirators Not Sufficient for Fleeing Sentence Enhancement Under U.S.S.G. § 3C1.2, by David Reutter
  37. California Supreme Court: Competence Hearing Required When Formerly Incompetent Defendant Quits Taking Psychotropic Medication and Exhibits Signs of Incompetence, by David Reutter
  38. SCOTUS: Presumption of Prejudice Recognized in Flores-Ortega Applies Regardless of Defendant’s Appeal Waiver, by Douglas Ankney
  39. California Governor Announces Moratorium on Capital Punishment, by Bill Barton
  40. Arrests Do Not Necessarily Represent Solved Crimes, by Edward Lyon
  41. Expert Report Urges Changes to Forensic Analysis in Courtrooms, by Dale Chappell
  42. Misconduct in the Forensic Science Community Reveals Urgent Need for Greater Oversight, by Kevin Bliss
  43. Q&A: Ineffective Assistance of Counsel: Which Errors Are Worth Pursuing?, by Dale Chappell, Brandon Sample
  44. Texas Misuses Privacy Law to Withhold In-Custody Death Information, by Edward Lyon
  45. Plea Bargaining: Prosecutors Leave Trail of Injustice When Playing Hardball with Defendants, by David Reutter

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