Fair Sentencing Act

Hughes v. United States

Issues

Is a defendant who pleads guilty under Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 11(c)(1)(C) eligible for sentence reduction when the pertinent Sentencing Guideline range is later modified by an amendment?

In this case, the Supreme Court will determine whether Erik Hughes is eligible for a sentence reduction even though he pled guilty with a binding sentence agreement. Hughes pled guilty to drug and firearm charges and received a 180-month sentence, which, at the time, was just below the range recommended by the Sentencing Guidelines of between 188 and 235 months. Since his sentencing, the Sentencing Commission amended the Guidelines, reducing the sentencing range for Hughes’s crime to between 151 and 188 months. Hughes sought to modify his sentence under 15 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2), which requires a sentence to be based on the Guidelines. The Eleventh Circuit denied modification based on Freeman v. United States, in which the Supreme Court held that sentences from plea deals are not based on the Guidelines, but Hughes contends that the circuit court incorrectly applied the 4-1-4 decision. Hughes also argues that he is eligible for a modification because his sentence is based on the Guidelines under a tort theory of proximate cause. The United States responds that the connection between the Guidelines, the plea agreement, and the sentencing is too tenuous. At stake are an important question of what portions of a plurality decision should bind lower courts, potential inequities regarding parties who may and may not have their sentences reduced, and a shift in power in plea negotiations.

Questions as Framed for the Court by the Parties

Whether, as a four-justice plurality in Freeman v. United States concluded, a defendant who enters into a Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 11(c)(1)(C) plea agreement is generally eligible for a sentence reduction if there is a later, retroactive amendment to the relevant Sentencing Guidelines range.

In 2013, the federal government charged Erik Hughes with four counts of drug and firearm offenses. United States v. Hughes, 849 F.3d 1008, 1010 (2017). Subsequently, Hughes and the government reached a plea agreement whereby Hughes plead guilty to two counts, conspiracy with intent to distribute and possession of a firearm as a felon, in exchange for a sentence of 180 months in prison. Id.

Written by

Edited by

Additional Resources

Submit for publication
0

Terry v. United States

Issues

Does the First Step Act’s definition of a “covered offense” include violations of 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(C) because they constitute a violation of a federal criminal statute for which the Fair Sentencing Act has modified the statutory penalties?

This case asks the Supreme Court to interpret the meaning of “covered offense” under Section 404(a) of the First Step Act to determine which crimes fall under its definition, and thus, may be subject to retroactive reduced sentencing. Petitioner Tarahrick Terry pled guilty to possessing with the intent to distribute an unspecified amount of cocaine base (or “crack cocaine”) in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(C) in 2008. In 2010, Congress enacted the Fair Sentencing Act, which amended parts of 21 U.S.C. § 841 to adjust the difference in sentencing between crimes involving crack cocaine and those involving powder cocaine. In 2018, Congress enacted the First Step Act, which made the Fair Sentencing Act’s amendments retroactive. Terry, in support of vacatur, argues that violations of Section 841(b)(1)(C) are “covered offenses” under Section 404 of the First Step Act, based on the text of Section 404(a), as well as the statute’s design and history. Adam K. Mortara, as amicus curiae in support of the judgment below, argues that Terry’s offense is not a “covered offense” under Section 404(a) based on a proper construction of the statute and the meaning of the phrases “violation of a Federal criminal statute” and “statutory penalties.” The case has implications for future retroactive sentencing statutory amendments, as well as inmates currently in custody for low-level crack-cocaine offenses before Congress passed the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010. 

Questions as Framed for the Court by the Parties

Whether pre-August 3, 2010, crack offenders sentenced under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(C) have a “covered offense” under Section 404 of the First Step Act.

On March 11, 2008, a grand jury indicted Tarahrick Terry with three crimes: (1) being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition in violation of 18 U.S.C.

Written by

Edited by

Additional Resources

Submit for publication
0
Subscribe to Fair Sentencing Act