PLAIN ERROR

Petitioner Armarcion Henderson pled guilty in district court to being a felon in possession of a firearm. The district court judge gave Henderson a longer sentence than required to ensure that he could participate in a drug treatment program and Henderson did not object to the sentence. The district court denied Henderson's later motion to correct his sentence and he appealed to the Fifth Circuit. The Fifth Circuit reviewed the district court's decision for plain error under Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 52(b) and, finding no substantial mistake by the district court, upheld the district court's sentencing. Henderson now argues that the Fifth Circuit should have reversed for plain error because, following Henderson's trial, the Supreme Court decided that judges cannot base a sentence on a defendant's rehabilitative needs.  The United States argues that because the law pertaining to sentencing was not settled at the time of his trial and the defendant did not object to his sentence, Henderson's claims do not meet the Rule 52(b) standard.  The Supreme Court's decision in this case will affect criminal defendants who use Rule 52(b) to appeal trial court decisions and will also impact judicial efficiency.

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In order to be granted relief under Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure Rule 52(b) (“Rule 52(b)”), plain-error review requires that a defendant establish prejudice by proving that the error affected a substantial right. See Brief for Petitioner, Saul Molina-Martinez at 17–19. In this case, the Supreme Court has an opportunity to determine whether an appellate court, applying plain-error review, should presume a rebuttable presumption of prejudice if there is a miscalculation of a defendant’s sentencing range under the United States Sentencing Guidelines (“Sentencing Guidelines”). See id. at i. Molina-Martinez, the petitioner, argues that an erroneous sentencing calculation under the Sentencing Guidelines should result in a rebuttable presumption that the error affected a defendant’s substantial rights. See id. at 15. The United States, the respondent, counters that because the misapplication of the Sentencing Guidelines is a non-structural error, Molina-Martinez retains the burden of showing prejudice. See Brief for Respondent, United States at 15, 24–28. The Court’s decision will potentially impact appellate courts’ application of plain-error review under Rule 52(b) and affect the procedural strategy and substantive rights of criminal trial litigants. See Brief for Petitioner at 45, 48; Brief for Respondent at 45–50.

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To aid the courts in sentencing defendants, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines recommend prison sentences based on defendants’ criminal histories. When a probation officer miscalculated convicted defendant Rosales-Mireles’s criminal history, the error bumped Rosales-Mireles into a sentencing category with a longer recommended imprisonment range. However, he ultimately received a sentence that overlapped with the range of the appropriate sentencing category. Rosales-Mireles contends that allowing such plain errors in criminal history calculations damages the fairness of the judicial process, and undermines the Guidelines’ purpose of uniform sentencing. The Government counters that requiring remand would erode courts’ discretion and impose a heavy financial burden on the Government. The Court must decide if integrity of the judiciary is better preserved by correcting a sentencing error or adhering to standard criminal procedure.

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This case asks the Supreme Court to decide whether a defendant who has pled guilty to the possession of a firearm should receive automatic plain-error relief if the defendant was not advised that an element of the offense is that he knew of his status as a felon. Petitioner United States argues that the guilty plea should not be reversed because plain-error review applies and insists that Respondent did not make the requisite showing of case-specific prejudice. Respondent Michael Andrew Gary counters that the guilty plea should be reversed because plain-error review does not apply in this case and that in the event that it does apply, case-specific prejudice is not required due to the error’s classification as “structural.” The outcome of this case will affect the obligations and strategies of criminal defendants and prosecutors, as well as the burden on the judicial system.

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A jury convicted Respondent Glenn Marcus on federal charges of sex trafficking and forced labor under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000. On appeal, a Second Circuit panel vacated the convictions as a violation of the Ex Post Facto Clause, because Congress enacted the statute two years after the earliest criminal conduct the indictment alleged. Although Marcus failed to preserve the ex post facto violation for appeal, the Second Circuit cited the “plain error doctrine” found in Rule 52(b) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, for authority to vacate. Rule 52(b) provides that when “[a] plain error [] affects substantial rights [it] may be considered even though it was not brought to the court's attention.” Petitioner United States asserts that the Court of Appeals’ “any possibility” standard contradicted Supreme Court precedent. The government argues that a defendant has to demonstrate a “reasonable possibility” a conviction was based on his pre-enactment conduct to violate the Ex Post Facto Clause. Marcus disputes the government’s interpretation, contending that the Second Circuit decision was consistent with Supreme Court precedent.

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