Sentencing — extraordinary familial circumstances

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U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit

Criminal

Sentencing — extraordinary familial circumstances

Even though the defendant cared for two teenage sons and a nephew, the district court properly determined there were no extraordinary familial circumstances justifying a below-guideline sentence.

“She maintains that the district court failed to give proper weight to her extraordinary familial circumstances, namely her role, prior to her incarceration, as the primary caregiver to her two teenage sons and her teenage nephew. While this court has recognized that giving ‘short shrift’ to the possibility of ‘extraordinary hardship’ on one’s family is a sound basis to remand for resentencing, United States v. Schroeder, 536 F.3d 746, 755 (7th Cir. 2008), there were no such extraordinary hardship in this case. In Schroeder, the defendant was the primary caregiver for his daughter who had a severely compromised immune system, rendering child care almost impossible if he were incarcerated. There were no analogous extraordinary hardship at play here. Yes, Ogletree cared for her children and nephew and they suffer emotionally from her incarceration. But there is nothing to take this case outside the normal realm of hardship all children suffer when a caregiving parent is incarcerated. To the extent there was a hardship, the district court took that into account, allowing Ogletree to delay the start of her sentence to allow her to make arrangements for the children. Under these circumstances, there was no abuse of discretion in sentencing her to 51 months’ imprisonment.”

Affirmed.

13-2098 U.S. v. Williams-Ogletree

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, St. Eve, J., Manion, J.