United States v. Randy Campos
Opinion
Randy Campos appeals the district court's imposition of an eight-year supervised release term based on its conclusion that eight years was the mandatory minimum term. For the reasons set forth below, we REVERSE the district court's imposition of an eight-year supervised release term and REMAND for resentencing to a new term, if any, of supervised release.
I. Background
Campos pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin within 1000 feet of a vocational school and college, in violation of
In May 2016, the probation office reported that Campos had violated the conditions of his supervised release by failing to report to his probation officer as directed, truthfully answer his probation's officer's inquiries, and follow his probation officer's instructions. The probation officer completed a Violation Worksheet stating that the "[p]eriod of supervised release to be served following release from imprisonment" was "[no less than] 8 years to Life."
After a hearing, the district court revoked Campos's supervised release. It stated that the relevant supervised release term was "not less than eight years up to life." Campos did not object. The district court sentenced Campos to nine months of imprisonment and an eight-year term of supervised release. It did not explain its reasons for the eight-year supervised release term. 2
The statement that Campos was subject to a mandatory minimum term of supervised release in this context was incorrect. While the minimum supervised release
*688
sentence for Campos's underlying drug conviction was eight years,
see
Campos appealed his supervised release sentence.
II. Legal Standard
Because Campos did not object to the district court's supervised-release determination, we review his sentence for plain error.
United States v. Putnam
,
If a petitioner satisfies the first three prongs, we will "exercise [our] discretion to correct the forfeited error if the error 'seriously affects the fairness, integrity or public reputation of judicial proceedings.' "
Molina-Martinez
,
III. Discussion
Campos claims the district court plainly erred when it concluded that eight years was the mandatory minimum supervised release term, when in fact no mandatory minimum existed. The Government essentially concedes that the district court committed a clear or obvious error but contends that Campos has not satisfied the third and fourth prongs of the plain error standard. We agree that the district court committed an error that was clear or obvious in light of the above statute. We thus focus on the third and fourth plain error prongs.
To satisfy the third prong, Campos must show that the district court's error "affected [his] substantial rights."
Molina-Martinez
,
Campos does not challenge a sentencing guidelines error; he contests the district court's conclusion that a minimum supervised release term existed. But the logic of
Molina-Martinez
applies with even more force to this mistake. In the sentencing guidelines context, the district court has discretion.
See
Molina-Martinez
,
Because Campos has satisfied the first three prongs of plain error review, we will "exercise [our] discretion to correct the forfeited error if the error 'seriously affects the fairness, integrity or public reputation of judicial proceedings.' "
Molina-Martinez
,
The risk of unnecessary deprivation of liberty particularly undermines the fairness, integrity, or public reputation of judicial proceedings in the context of a plain Guidelines error because of the role the district court plays in calculating the range and the relative ease of correcting the error. Unlike "case[s] where trial strategies, in retrospect, might be criticized for leading to a harsher sentence," Guidelines miscalculations ultimately result from judicial error. That was especially so here where the District Court's error ... was based on a mistake made in the presentence investigation report by the Probation Office, which works on behalf of the District Court.
Rosales-Mireles
,
Although
Rosales-Mireles
involved a prison sentence, not supervised release, "[w]e have recognized that supervised release terms also constitute a substantial restraint on liberty."
Putnam
,
The Government offers a final argument that the district court's decision to impose eight years of supervised release was "unquestionably fair" in light of the fact that Campos absconded from supervision almost immediately after being released from prison. It therefore contends that this court may sustain the supervised release term notwithstanding the district court's error. Whatever the merits of the Government's argument, we cannot assume or infer that it is correct without first confirming that the district court was guided by the circumstances of this case and not its mistaken presumption that a mandatory minimum controlled. This type of error necessarily alters the manner in which the district court approached its decision.
*690 On remand, the district court may be persuaded by arguments the Government makes in support of a long period of supervised release. But it must do so free of the restraint from the non-existent mandatory minimum.
IV. Conclusion
For the foregoing reasons, we VACATE the district court's imposition of an eight-year supervised release term and REMAND for resentencing.
Campos was subject to an eight-year minimum supervised release term at his original sentencing.
See
The district court did order that Campos be placed in a residential reentry center for the first six months of his supervised release term.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff - Appellee v. Randy CAMPOS, Defendant - Appellant
- Cited By
- 9 cases
- Status
- Published