United States v. Breyci Villareal

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit

United States v. Breyci Villareal

Opinion

USCA4 Appeal: 22-4705 Doc: 32 Filed: 02/08/2024 Pg: 1 of 4

UNPUBLISHED

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 22-4705

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff - Appellee,

v.

BREYCI VILLAREAL,

Defendant - Appellant.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, at Greensboro. William L. Osteen, Jr., District Judge. (1:16-cr-00002-WO-1)

Submitted: October 31, 2023 Decided: February 8, 2024

Before WILKINSON, QUATTLEBAUM, and BENJAMIN, Circuit Judges.

Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

ON BRIEF: Michael W. Patrick, LAW OFFICE OF MICHAEL W. PATRICK, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, for Appellant. Margaret McCall Reece, Assistant United States Attorney, OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY, Greensboro, North Carolina, for Appellee.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. USCA4 Appeal: 22-4705 Doc: 32 Filed: 02/08/2024 Pg: 2 of 4

PER CURIAM:

Breyci Villareal appeals the district court’s judgment and commitment order

revoking his supervised release and sentencing him to 24 months’ imprisonment with no

additional supervised release. Counsel has filed a brief pursuant to Anders v. California,

386 U.S. 738

(1967), stating that there are no meritorious grounds for appeal but

questioning whether the court exceeded the maximum allowable term of imprisonment.

The Government did not file a response. Although informed of his right to file a pro se

supplemental brief, Villareal has not done so. We affirm.

The district court may revoke supervised release if it “finds by a preponderance of

the evidence that the defendant violated a condition of supervised release.”

18 U.S.C. § 3583

(e)(3). This Court reviews a district court’s revocation decision for abuse of

discretion and its factual findings underlying the revocation for clear error. United States v.

Padgett,

788 F.3d 370, 373

(4th Cir. 2015). We conclude that there was no error in the

court’s decision to revoke Villareal’s supervised release.

“A district court has broad discretion when imposing a sentence upon revocation of

supervised release.” United States v. Webb,

738 F.3d 638, 640

(4th Cir. 2013). “We will

affirm a revocation sentence if it is within the statutory maximum and is not ‘plainly

unreasonable.’”

Id.

(quoting United States v. Crudup,

461 F.3d 433, 438

(4th Cir. 2006)).

“[W]e first consider whether the sentence imposed is procedurally or substantively

unreasonable. Only if we find the sentence unreasonable must we decide whether it is

plainly so.”

Id.

(citation and internal quotation marks omitted). We generally employ the

2 USCA4 Appeal: 22-4705 Doc: 32 Filed: 02/08/2024 Pg: 3 of 4

same procedural and substantive considerations that guides our review of original

sentences. Crudup,

461 F.3d at 438-39

.

“A revocation sentence is procedurally reasonable if the district court adequately

explains the chosen sentence after considering the Sentencing Guidelines’ nonbinding

Chapter Seven policy statements and the applicable

18 U.S.C. § 3553

(a) factors.” United

States v. Slappy,

872 F.3d 202, 207

(4th Cir. 2017) (footnotes omitted); see

18 U.S.C. § 3583

(e) (listing relevant factors). “[A] revocation sentence is substantively reasonable if

the court sufficiently states a proper basis for its conclusion that the defendant should

receive the sentence imposed.”

Id.

(alteration and internal quotation marks omitted).

We conclude that that the 24-month sentence, the statutory maximum, is both

procedurally and substantively reasonable. See

18 U.S.C. § 3583

(e)(3), United States v.

Harris,

878 F.3d 111, 119

(4th Cir. 2017). When imposing Villareal’s revocation sentence,

the district court correctly calculated the policy statement range of imprisonment,

considered the relevant statutory factors, imposed a sentence within the statutory

maximum, gave sufficiently detailed reasons for its decision, and addressed Villareal’s

argument for a lower sentence.

In accordance with Anders, we have reviewed the record in its entirety and found

no meritorious grounds for appeal. Accordingly, we affirm the district court’s revocation

judgment. This court requires that counsel inform Villareal, in writing, of the right to

petition the Supreme Court of the United States for further review. If Villareal requests

that a petition be filed, but counsel believes that such a petition would be frivolous, then

counsel may move in this court for leave to withdraw from representation. Counsel’s

3 USCA4 Appeal: 22-4705 Doc: 32 Filed: 02/08/2024 Pg: 4 of 4

motion must state that a copy thereof was served on Villareal. 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

4

Reference

Status
Unpublished