United States v. Chester Griffiths

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
United States v. Chester Griffiths, 631 F. App'x 150 (4th Cir. 2016)

United States v. Chester Griffiths

Opinion

PER CURIAM.

Chester Griffiths appeals the district court’s order denying his motion for a sentence reduction under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2) (2012) pursuant to Guidelines Amendment 782. For the reasons that follow, we affirm.

A district court is authorized to reduce a defendant’s sentence of imprisonment under § 3582(c)(2) only if the defendant’s sentence was “based on a sentencing range that has subsequently been lowered by the Sentencing Commission” through a retroactively applicable Guidelines amendment. 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2); see U.S. Sentencing Guidelines Manual § lB1.10(a)(l) *151 (2006). As the court determined' at sentencing, Griffiths’ Guidelines range was 120 months’ imprisonment because the Guidelines range established by his total offense level and criminal history category was lower than the statutory mandatory minimum applicable to his offense. . See 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(b)(1)(B), 851 (2012); USSG § 5Gl.l(b); USSG ch. 5, pt. A (sentencing table). Amendment 782 did not lower Griffiths’ mandatory minimum sentence, and his Guidelines range remains 120 months. See United States v. Black, 737 F.3d 280, 286-87 (4th Cir. 2013). Because Griffiths is ineligible for a sentence reduction under § 3582(c)(2), we find no abuse of discretion in the court’s denial of Griffiths’ motion. See United States Stewart, 595 F.3d 197, 200 (4th Cir. 2010) (standard of review).

Accordingly, we affirm the district court’s order. We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before this court and argument would not aid the decisional process.

AFFIRMED.

Reference

Full Case Name
UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Chester GRIFFITHS, Defendant-Appellant
Status
Unpublished