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Sentencing — discretion

By: WISCONSIN LAW JOURNAL STAFF//March 21, 2013//

Sentencing — discretion

By: WISCONSIN LAW JOURNAL STAFF//March 21, 2013//

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United States Court of Appeals For the Seventh Circuit

Criminal

Sentencing — discretion

Where the district court gave no reasons for denying a downward variance, the sentence must be vacated.

“In its denial of the motion for downward variance, the court only stated generally that in calculating the sentence it considered the PSR, the submissions of the parties and the arguments and evidence introduced at sentencing. The record is silent on the district court’s reasoning for possibly using Pietkiewicz’s conduct from the Ohio offense to enhance Pietkiewicz’s sentence but denying a sentence reduction based on that same Ohio imprisonment term. Of course, Pietkiewicz used five other false identities in order to secure financing to purchase ten additional cars, so it is possible that the district court felt the Ohio offense had no impact on the sentencing, one way or the other. While the district court may have had valid reasons for denying Pietkiewicz’s sentence reduction, this court cannot determine what they are from the record or that the court considered Pietkiewicz’s arguments for downward variances. For these reasons, the district court erred in denying, without explanation, Pietkiewicz’s motion for a downward variance based on his related Ohio federal case. We therefore vacate Pietkiewicz’s sentence and remand the case to the district court so the court can evaluate Pietkiewicz’s motion for downward variance in sentencing pursuant to U.S.S.G. §§ 5G1.3, 5K2.23 and explain the reasoning for its decision with respect to that motion.”

Vacated and Remanded.

11-3296 U.S. v. Pietkiewicz

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Guzmán, J., Cudahy, J.

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