By: Derek Hawkins//August 22, 2016//
7th Circuit Court of Appeals
Case Name: United States of America v. Terry N. Taylor
Case No.: 16-1019
Officials: BAUER, POSNER, and SYKES, Circuit Judges
Focus: Sentencing
District judge did not adequately justify sentence imposed on appellant
“These were flimsy grounds. Most of the defendant’s criminal history prior to the shotgun incident consisted of driving offenses, and he presumably can’t drive any longer because of his vision problem. As for pestering federal judges (including the author of this opinion!) with seemingly groundless complaints about how he’s been treated by the criminal justice system, he has a constitutional right to petition the government for redress of grievances, though if he becomes an utter nuisance his petitioning activity can be reined in. He has not threatened anybody with violence or other criminal harm, and the judge offered no adequate rea‐ son for inferring a risk of recidivism from the contents of his complaints. See United States v. Bradley, 628 F.3d 394, 400 (7th Cir. 2010) (“Due process requires that sentencing determinations be based on reliable evidence, not speculation or un‐ founded allegations.” (quoting United States v. England, 555 F.3d 616, 622 (7th Cir. 2009))).”
Vacated and remanded