Plea & Sentencing – Sentencing Guidelines

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7^th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: United States of America v. Nicolas Rodriguez

Case No.: 17-2222

Officials: WOOD, Chief Judge, and RIPPLE and KANNE, Circuit Judges.

Focus: Plea & Sentencing – Sentencing Guidelines

Nicolas Rodriguez pled guilty to dealing firearms without a license and distributing cocaine. In his plea agreement, Rodriguez admitted to selling cocaine to an informant on one occasion and selling firearms to that informant on eight other occasions. The plea agreement also suggests that Rodriguez was aware that the guns he sold were being used to commit felonies. Indeed, Rodriguez admitted that he and the informant discussed the use of the weapons. For example, Rodriguez told the informant “You got 50 in the box. You better shoot them flakes.” (R. 62 at 5.) Rodriguez also asked if the informant’s “boys” had used a Tec-9 semi-automatic pistol that he had previously sold. (Id. at 5–6.) The informant responded that they had used it once. After those conversations, Rodriguez continued to sell the informant firearms.

At sentencing, the district court applied a four-level enhancement under U.S.S.G § 2K2.1(b)(5) for trafficking firearms (“trafficking enhancement”). And it applied an additional four-level enhancement under U.S.S.G § 2K2.1(b)(6)(B) for transferring a firearm with the knowledge, intent, or reason to believe that it would be used or possessed in connection with another felony offense (“other-felony enhancement”). The enhancements produced a guideline range of 135 to 168 months. Ultimately, the district court imposed a below guidelines sentence of 108 months’ imprisonment. Rodriguez now appeals.

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.