Sentencing Guidelines

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7^th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: United States of America v. Derrick D. Bell

Case No.: 17-2307

Officials: BAUER, FLAUM, and MANION, Circuit Judges.

Focus: Sentencing Guidelines

During the execution of a search warrant on January 15, 2016, ATF agents found Derrick Bell in possession of a .40 caliber pistol. Bell was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm on March 1, 2016, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1), and on February 6, 2017, he pleaded guilty pursuant to a plea agreement.

In the Presentence Investigation Report (PSR), the Probation Officer calculated Bell’s total offense level as 23, with a criminal history category of VI, for a Sentencing Guideline range of 92 to 115 months. The PSR stated that “the [G]uideline range for a term of supervised release is 1 year to 3 years.” See U.S.S.G. § 5D1.2(a)(2). The Probation Officer also filed a separate sentencing recommendation, which provided a chart breaking down the statutory and Guideline ranges for supervised release. Finally, the government filed a “Notice of Agreement Regarding Supervised Release,” which stated that the government recommended a term of supervised release within the Guidelines range of one to three years.

The district court sentenced Bell to 98 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by three years of supervised release. On appeal, Bell raises three procedural challenges to his sentence. Since we conclude that the district court did not commit any errors, we affirm.

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.