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Seventh Circuit Announces Safety Valve Relief Under § 3553(f) Is Narrower Than Guidelines Firearms Enhancement Under § 2D1.1(b)(1), District Court Erred by Conflating Them
Loaded on May 15, 2024
by Douglas Ankney
published in Criminal Legal News
May, 2024, page 13
Filed under:
U.S. Sentencing Guidelines,
Possession or Use of Firearms,
Vicarious Liability,
Safety Valve.
Location:
Illinois.
by Douglas Ankney
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held that the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois erred in conflating the scopes of the no-firearms condition of the “safety valve” of 18 U.S.C. § 3553(f) and the firearms enhancement of U.S. …
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More from this issue:
- Stinging Back: Resisting Government Surveillance of Cellphones, by Anthony Accurso
- Seventh Circuit Announces Safety Valve Relief Under § 3553(f) Is Narrower Than Guidelines Firearms Enhancement Under § 2D1.1(b)(1), District Court Erred by Conflating Them, by Douglas Ankney
- Cellular Roaming’s Inadequate Security, by Michael Thompson
- Tech Monopolies Prevent Effective Privacy Laws in the U.S., by Anthony Accurso
- California AB 2773 Requires Police to State Reason for Traffic Stops Before Questioning, by Jo Ellen Nott
- Fourth Circuit: Maryland’s First-Degree Assault Statute Is Indivisible so Conviction Is Not an ACCA Predicate for Sentencing Enhancement Purposes, by Douglas Ankney
- Report Finds Bad Forensic Evidence Leads to More Wrongful Convictions and Establishes Forensic Errors Typology, by Matthew Clarke
- Washington Supreme Court: Nonexceptional Consecutive Terms of ‘Community Custody’ May Not Exceed Aggregate Term of 24 Months, by Sam Rutherford
- SCOTUS: Reiterates Jury Verdict of Acquittal for Any Reason Bars Retrial Under Double Jeopardy Clause of Fifth Amendment, by Richard Resch
- California Court of Appeal: Petitioner Has Constitutional Right to Be Present at Evidentiary Hearing Under Felony Murder Resentencing Law, by David Reutter
- FBI Visit to Oklahoma Woman in Response to Social Media Post Sparks Debate on Free Speech, by Jo Ellen Nott
- De-Identified Is Not Anonymous, by Michael Thompson
- The Police Have a Dark Money Slush Fund, by Katya Schwenk
- Police Body Cameras, A Decade Later, by Anthony Accurso
- Criminal Justice Reform Becoming a Corporate Priority, by David Reutter
- Tenth Circuit: Plea Not Knowing and Voluntary Where Plea Counsel Materially Misrepresented Defendant’s Right to Impartial Jury Selected Through Racially Nondiscriminatory Means, by Douglas Ankney
- More Facial Recognition Failures, by Michael Thompson
- California Supreme Court: Jury’s Finding of Intent to Kill for Gang Enhancement, Standing Alone, Insufficient to Find Prisoner Failed to State a Prima Facie Case in § 1172.6 Petition for Resentencing on First-Degree Murder Conviction, by Douglas Ankney
- Non-Toxic Fluorescent Spray Reveals Fingerprints in Seconds, by Douglas Ankney
- Use of Solitary Confinement on the Rise in ICE Facilities, by Anthony Accurso
- New York Court of Appeals: SORA Designation Violates Defendant’s Due Process Rights Where Crime Involved No Sexual Contact or Motivation and Defendant Was Not a Sex Offender and Posed No Risk of Sexual Threat, by Douglas Ankney
- New Data From BOP Reveals Technical Violations Account for Nearly a Third of First Step Act Recidivism, by Jo Ellen Nott
- The Death of the Savings Clause, by Dale Chappell
- Retraction: ‘Federal Habeas Corpus: The Savings Clause Remedy for Federal Prisoners’ by Dale Chappell
- First Circuit: Defendant’s Statement ‘I guess I’ll wait until I have a lawyer’ Is Unequivocal Invocation of Right to Counsel, by Sam Rutherford
- Facial Recognition’s Distorted View, by Michael Thompson
- Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Announces Defendants Under Age 21 Ineligible for LWOP Sentences, by Douglas Ankney
- New Jersey Supreme Court Announces Extension of Eyewitness Identification Safeguards of Henderson to Pretrial Preparation Sessions and Provides Framework for Showing Photos During Pretrial Phase, by Douglas Ankney
- Robotic Police Dogs Being Adopted Across the Country, by Michael Thompson
- Ninth Circuit Announces Adoption of ‘Premises Rule’ for Co-Tenant Consent-to-Search Analysis, Holds Co-Tenant’s Consent Invalid Where Defendant Instructed Co-Tenant Not to Allow Police Entry in Their Presence, by Sam Rutherford
- Sixth Circuit Announces Untimely Notice of Appeal That Provides Reason for Tardiness May Be Construed as Motion to Reopen, by Douglas Ankney
- Googling Your Privacy, by Michael Thompson
- News in Brief
More from Douglas Ankney:
- The Dramatic Increase in the Elderly Prison Population Is Fiscally and Morally Irresponsible, Oct. 1, 2026
- Second Circuit Affirms Denial of Qualified Immunity but Clarifies that 14th Amendment ‘Objective Reasonableness’ Is Standard of Review for Pretrial Detainee’s Claim of Sexual Abuse, Oct. 1, 2026
- California Supreme Court Announces Totality-of-Circumstances Framework Focused on Defendant’s Subjective Understanding Under § 1473.7(a)(1), Holding Immigration Consequences Advisement Is Relevant but Not Dispositive, Oct. 1, 2026
- Idaho Supreme Court Holds Conflicting Affidavits About Plea Acceptance Require Evidentiary Hearing on Ineffective-Assistance Claim, Oct. 1, 2026
- Tenth Circuit Vacates Award of Costs to Prison Officials, Revives Prisoner’s Claim Alleging Denial of Access to Functioning Toilets and Exposure to Other Prisoners’ Feces, Oct. 1, 2026
- Second Circuit Vacates Above-Guidelines Firearm-Trafficking Sentence Based on Failure to Assist Law Enforcement and Unexplained Reliance on Factors Already Included in Guidelines Range, Sept. 1, 2026
- Ninth Circuit Reverses Convictions, Holding Requirement That Defendant Testify Before Displaying Hand Tattoos Violates Fifth Amendment, Sept. 1, 2026
- Ohio Supreme Court Announces Postconviction DNA-Testing Orders Need Only Identify Statutory Reason to Satisfy R.C. 2953.73(D) “Reasons” Requirement, Sept. 1, 2026
- Federal Court Upholds Consultants’ Finding that Oklahoma Is Not Honoring Its Consent Decree to Provide Mental Health Treatment, Sept. 1, 2026
- Idaho Legislature Moves to Hide Execution Protocol from Judicial Scrutiny, Sept. 1, 2026
More from these topics:
- Tenth Circuit Announces Resentencing After Probation Revocation Must Begin with Chapter 7 Range, Holding Chapter 5 Range Should Be Considered When Deciding Whether to Vary, Sept. 1, 2026. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Revocation/Modification of Probation, etc., Statement of Reasons, Sentence, Factors To Be Considered.
- Relevant Conduct: How Federal Sentencing Law Punishes More Than the Crime of Conviction, Aug. 1, 2026. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Prior Conviction/Sentence/Incarceration, Plain Error, Acquitted Conduct/Uncharged Crimes/Dismissed Counts, Relevant Conduct.
- California Court of Appeal Announces Defendants Who Exercise Right to Jury Trial on Aggravating Circumstances Are Entitled to Closing Argument by Counsel on Those Factors, July 1, 2026. Sixth Amendment, Counsel - Constructive denial of, Possession or Use of Firearms, Sentences - Adjustments and Departures, Grounds for Relief.
- U.S. Sentencing Commission: 2026 Amendments to the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, June 1, 2026. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Alternative Sentencing, Sentence Enhancements/Departures, Multiple/Multiplicious Counts, Drug Quantity.
- First Circuit Vacates Drug Courier’s Sentence, Holding District Court Erred by Failing to Conduct Proper Comparative Culpability Analysis Under § 3B1.2 When It Excluded Other Participants in Drug Shipment From Universe of Comparators, May 1, 2026. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Mitigating Role/Circumstances/Evidence, Appellate Jurisdiction/Review, Sentencing Findings, Relevant Conduct.
- Sixth Circuit Announces Federal Coercion and Enticement Statute Requires Knowledge of Victim’s Minor Status, Deepening Circuit Split, May 1, 2026. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, Statutory Construction/Interpretation, Sentence, Miscalculation of the Guidelines Sentencing Range.
- Tenth Circuit Holds Prior California Child Pornography Conviction Does Not Trigger Federal Mandatory Minimum Because State Statute Encompasses Conduct Beyond Federal Definition Under Categorical Approach, April 1, 2026. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Qualifying Offenses, Mandatory Minimum Sentence, Statutory Construction/Interpretation, Child Pornography.
- U.S. Sentencing Commission Report Breaks Down Federal Contraband Sentences, March 1, 2026. Guard Misconduct, Mechanical Searches/Scanners, Statistics/Trends, U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Bribery/Extortion/Theft.
- Washington State Guard’s Conviction Affirmed in Self-Inflicted Gunshot Wound Scheme, March 1, 2026. Guard Misconduct, Conspiracies, Attempts, Solicitations, False Statements/Perjury, Possession or Use of Firearms, Abuse of Position of Trust.
- Acquitted Conduct Sentencing: Not Guilty – But Punished Anyway, March 1, 2026. U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Federal Legislation, Fifth Amendment, Sixth Amendment, Acquitted Conduct/Uncharged Crimes/Dismissed Counts.





