U.S. v. Robinson, 98-2402
| Decision Date | 16 February 1999 |
| Docket Number | No. 98-2402,98-2402 |
| Citation | 164 F.3d 1068 |
| Parties | UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Charles R. ROBINSON IV, Defendant-Appellant. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Seventh Circuit |
Stephen A. Kubiatowski (argued), Office of the United States Attorney, Springfield, IL, for Plaintiff-Appellee.
Jon G. Noll, Richard Kim (argued), Springfield, IL, for Defendant-Appellant.
Before BAUER, RIPPLE, and EVANS, Circuit Judges.
Charles Robinson IV raises four issues on this appeal but emphasizes one: He claims the district court assigned too much crack cocaine to him under the relevant conduct calculus of the federal sentencing guidelines and, as a result, the sentence he received is too high. He is right about one thing--his sentence is very high, as a term of imprisonment of 100 years was ordered. We think there's merit to the issue Robinson stresses, and for that reason we vacate his sentence and remand the case for further proceedings.
Robinson went to trial on a three-count indictment in December of 1997. The indictment charged one count of possession of both cocaine and cocaine base with intent to distribute, one count of possession of only cocaine base with intent to distribute, and one count of simple possession of cocaine base. He was convicted on all three counts.
At sentencing, the district judge appropriately relied on the evidence he heard during the trial and information included in the presentence report prepared by the United States Probation Office in arriving at Robinson's sentencing range under the federal sentencing guidelines. The judge pegged Robinson's base offense level at 38, the absolute top of the ladder for drug offenders under the guidelines. To this finding the judge added 2 points because one of Robinson's underlings (Gina Loonsfoot) carried a firearm while transporting drugs, U.S.S.G. § 2D1.1(b)(1); 4 points because Robinson was an "organizer," etc., of five or more underlings, U.S.S.G. § 3B1.1(a); and 2 points because Robinson obstructed justice, U.S.S.G. § 3C1.1. This brought him to level 46, three grades higher than the maximum level of 43. Level 43, the level that was used, calls for a life sentence across the board without regard to an offender's placement in a criminal history category. Because life is not called for in the statutory penalties for Robinson's counts of conviction--40, 40, and 20 years are the maximums--those sentences were imposed, and they were ordered to be served consecutively. Robinson will be "eligible" for release in 2083, when he's 120 years old.
Level 38 is reserved for big-time drug offenders who are involved with huge quantities: more than 30 kilos of heroin, 150 kilos of cocaine, and 30,000 kilos (a whopping 33 tons) of marijuana. A much smaller quantity of cocaine base (crack, as it's called on the street)--1.5 or more kilos--also drops an offender in level 38.
In putting Robinson in level 38 the district judge converted his cocaine quantities into marijuana using the guidelines' "Drug Equivalency Tables." He did so, appropriately again, because two different drugs--powder and crack cocaine--were involved. Here is how the quantity was determined:
Drug Marijuana
Source Table Amount Equivalency
Count 1 Powder cocaine 27.6 grams 5.52 kilos
Count 1 Crack 16.8 grams 336.00 kilos
Count 2 Crack 2.1 grams 42.00 kilos
Count 3 Crack 14.0 grams 280.00 kilos
From David Alton Crack 56.7 grams 1,134.00 kilos
From Michael Smith Crack 54.0 grams 1,080.00 kilos
From Gina Loonsfoot Crack 5,103.0 grams 102,060.00 kilos
Total marijuana equivalency:104,937.52 kilos
Robinson's powder cocaine accounts for a mere .000053 percent of the total so, for simplicity sake, we'll drop it from the picture and concentrate on the crack, which also allows us to ditch, entirely, the equivalency table. Taking it one step at a time, Robinson's crack on his three counts of conviction totals only 32.9 grams (2.1 + 14 + 16.8), or just a tad over an ounce, about the weight of an envelope that can be sent through the mail for the cost of a 32-cent stamp. If this were all the crack chargeable to Robinson, his base offense level would be 28 (20 grams but less than 35). To this amount the judge added 56.7 grams of crack based on statements made by David Alton, which brought Robinson's total to 89.6 grams, a total that puts him in base offense level 32. To this we can add the 54 grams attributed by the judge to the statements of Michael Smith, which brings the total to 143.6 grams, still a level 32 placement...
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