Court Error – Unreasonable Sentencing – General Appeal

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Criminal

7^th Circuit Court of Appeals

Officials: BAUER, WILLIAMS, and HAMILTON, Circuit Judges.

Court Error – Unreasonable Sentencing – General Appeal

No. 14-3311; 14-3363 United States of America v. Vernon Chapman

Court findings appropriate given the severity of defendant and extensive criminal history

“In this case, the district court properly found that Chapman’s total offense level was 37, and that he had a category VI criminal history. As a result, the appropriate Sentencing Guidelines range was between 360 months to life imprisonment. The government agreed that was the correct range, but recommended a sentence ranging from 262 to 327 months’ imprisonment. The district court sentenced Chapman to 200 months’ imprisonment, well below both the Sentencing Guidelines and the prosecution’s recommendation. The Seventh Circuit has held that a sentence below the Sentencing Guidelines range is not an unwarranted disparity. United States v. Gonzalez, 765 F.3d 732, 740 (7th Cir. 2014) (emphasis in original) (citation omitted).”

Affirmed.

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Attorney Derek A. Hawkins is the managing partner at Hawkins Law Offices LLC, where he heads up the firm’s startup law practice. He specializes in business formation, corporate governance, intellectual property protection, private equity and venture capital funding and mergers & acquisitions. Check out the website at www.hawkins-lawoffices.com or contact them at 262-737-8825.