Sentencing Guidelines

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7^th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: United States of America v. Keith White

Case No.: 22-2014

Officials: Sykes, Chief Judge, and Easterbrook and Ripple, Circuit Judges.

Focus: Sentencing Guidelines

White, along with others, faced charges of conspiracy to distribute heroin following the deaths of three inmates from drug overdoses. He pleaded guilty and received a sentence with heightened penalties due to his extensive criminal history, including two prior felony convictions for cocaine dealing. This marked his second appeal contesting his sentence.

White argued that his classification as a career offender under the Sentencing Guidelines was improperly determined in light of the Supreme Court’s ruling in Kisor v. Wilkie. He contended that the guideline’s definition of a “controlled substance offense” clearly excluded inchoate offenses such as conspiracy, thus warranting no deference to the application note expanding this definition.

However, the Seventh Circuit disagreed. It pointed out that the Supreme Court’s decision in Kisor did not overturn Stinson v. United States, which established that commentary within the Guidelines interpreting or elucidating a guideline carries authority unless it violates the Constitution, a federal statute, or conflicts with the guideline itself. Consequently, the court deferred to the Sentencing Commission’s interpretation of the career-offender guideline.

Furthermore, the court dismissed White’s argument invoking the “major questions doctrine” to invalidate the application note. It concluded that the application note did not represent a “radical expansion” of the Sentencing Commission’s jurisdiction, and thus, the doctrine was not applicable. As a result, the court upheld the judgment.

Affirmed.

Decided 04/02/24

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