US v. Woods, 90 CR 525-3.
| Decision Date | 18 December 1991 |
| Docket Number | No. 90 CR 525-3.,90 CR 525-3. |
| Citation | 780 F. Supp. 1201 |
| Parties | UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff, v. Victor WOODS, Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Northern District of Illinois |
Josh Buchman, U.S. Atty., for plaintiff.
Thomas McQueen, Jenner & Block, Chicago, Ill., for defendant.
Pursuant to Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 32(c)(3)(D), defendant Victor Woods has moved to correct certain factual inaccuracies in the Presentence Investigation Report ("PSI"). The court already has resolved many of the issues raised by the defendant's motion. Remaining is the issue of how many criminal history points defendant should be assessed for purposes of determining defendant's appropriate Criminal History Category under the United States Sentencing Guidelines ("USSG").
Defendant Woods is no stranger to the criminal justice system. Although only twenty-seven years old, defendant has been previously convicted in six different felony criminal cases for which he served sentences of imprisonment. Having considered defendant's prior criminal record and evaluated it in light of the law of the Seventh Circuit, the court finds that the defendant must be assessed eighteen criminal history points — three points for each of his six felony criminal convictions for which he received sentences of imprisonment.
According to the PSI, on six occasions prior to pleading guilty in this case defendant Woods was convicted of state felony criminal offenses. The sentences in each of these six prior cases ran concurrently with one another. The court will discuss each of those convictions in turn. The court and the parties have had access to documentation from both the state court files and law enforcement files concerning these offenses.2
On May 21, 1983, Woods and three accomplices, Parker, Albert and Prince, drove to a Jewel Store located in Arlington Heights, Illinois. (Info. No. 83 C 20033401.) Woods and Prince entered the store with plastic, unloaded pellet guns, and a replica of a World War II machine gun. When the store's manager could not open the safe, all employees were locked in the meat locker. (PSI, lines 301-308.) Parker remained in the getaway vehicle. Albert remained in a vehicle monitoring a police radio scanner. (Woods' confession.)
Woods pled guilty and was found guilty of attempted armed robbery. (PSI, lines 293-295.) For purposes of sentencing, Woods' May 21 attempted armed robbery was consolidated with a June 13, 1983 robbery, discussed below. (PSI, lines 312-314.) On June 18, 1984, Judge Edward M. Fiala, Jr. of the Cook County Circuit Court sentenced Woods to four years imprisonment for the May 21, 1983 attempted armed robbery. (PSI, lines 293-300.)
On May 23, 1983 at 12:15 a.m., Woods, Parker and Albert committed a second robbery. Prince was not present. Woods entered a McDonald's Restaurant in Schaumburg, Illinois at closing time wearing a ski mask and armed with a plastic pellet gun. Parker and Albert waited in vehicles. Only Woods and Parker were charged. (Info. No. 83 C 3-35606.) Woods demanded and received money from the McDonald's employees. (PSI, lines 407-414.) According to Woods' confession, Albert again monitored a police radio scanner in the vehicle.
Woods was found guilty of robbery for this offense in a bench trial. (PSI, lines 400-406.) This robbery was consolidated with another robbery for purposes of sentencing — a robbery committed on May 29, 1983 and addressed below. (PSI, lines 418-420.) On July 24, 1984, Judge Rosalind M. Crandell of the Cook County Circuit Court sentenced Woods to four years imprisonment for the May 23, 1983 robbery. (PSI, lines 400-406.)
On May 29, 1983, at 12:45 a.m., Woods and Prince entered a Wendy's Restaurant in Palatine, Illinois. Wearing ski masks and armed with pellet guns, the two men demanded and received money from Wendy's employees. (PSI, lines 324-330.) According to Woods' confession, Parker, Albert and Cliff Hurd waited in vehicles outside monitoring police radio scanners. Parker was charged with Woods and Prince. (Info. No. 83 C 3-35416.)
Woods was found guilty of robbery in a bench trial. (PSI, lines 317-323.) As noted above, this May 29 robbery was consolidated with the May 23 robbery for purposes of sentencing. (PSI, lines 418-420.) On July 24, 1984, Judge Crandell sentenced Woods to four years imprisonment for the May 29, 1983 robbery. (PSI, lines 317-323.)
On June 13, 1983, Woods, Parker and Prince drove to a Show Biz Pizza restaurant in Arlington Heights, Illinois. Parker served as the driver monitoring Albert's police radio scanner. Woods and Prince entered the store, again armed with plastic pellet guns. They robbed the manager of over $10,000.00. (PSI, lines 268-273.) According to Woods' confession, Hurd had "cased" the Show Biz location and one of Prince's friends, Matt Shields, had provided the group with information about the restaurant.
Woods was found guilty of robbery in a bench trial. (Docket Sheet 83 C 20033301.) As discussed above, this robbery was consolidated with the May 21 robbery for purposes of sentencing. (PSI, lines 312-314.) On June 18, 1984, Judge Fiala sentenced Woods to four years imprisonment for the June 13, 1983 robbery. (PSI, lines 259-267.)
On March 11, 1984, at 7:15 p.m., Woods and four other men committed a robbery. Woods remained outside while three of his accomplices, armed with a .38 calibre revolver and a pellet gun, approached two employees of an Eagle Food Store in Buffalo Grove, Illinois.3 (Complaint No. 842001139801.) Arthur Soteras, Jerome Walls and William Johnson were charged with Woods. (Indictment No. 84-5029.)
The employees were ordered back into the store. One employee was ordered to lie face down on the floor. The other employee was led to the safe and ordered to open it. The defendants then took $350.00 in cash and change from the safe. (PSI, lines 361-366; Complaint, supra.)
Woods pled guilty and was found guilty of two counts of robbery and two counts of unlawful restraint for this offense. (PSI, lines 335-339.) On December 11, 1984, Judge Nicholas T. Pomaro of the Cook County Circuit Court sentenced Woods to four years imprisonment for the robbery convictions, and three years concurrent imprisonment for the unlawful restraint convictions. (PSI, lines 339-354.)
On March 18, 1984, Woods attempted another armed robbery. On that date Woods was in a Mercedes Benz automobile with co-defendants Michael Dale and Arthur Soteras outside a Jewel-Osco Store in Buffalo Grove, Illinois. Co-defendants William Johnson and Jerome Walls and three juveniles waited in a Ford Bronco. The occupants of the two vehicles communicated through walkie-talkies. (PSI, lines 384-390; Buffalo Grove Police Report at 2-6.)
The men in the Mercedes then had the juveniles exit the Ford Bronco with ski masks and guns. The juveniles put a gun to the back of a store employee in an attempt to enter the store. The store had just closed, however, and was locked up. Thus, the juveniles were unable to complete the robbery. (PSI, lines 390-394.) The defendants were arrested by a task force of local police surveilling their movements. (Buffalo Grove Police Report at 1.)
Woods pled guilty and was found guilty of attempted robbery. (PSI, lines 371-373.) On June 28, 1984, Judge William D. Block of the Lake County Circuit Court4 sentenced Woods to four years imprisonment for this March 18, 1984 attempted armed robbery. (PSI, lines 373-383.)
Woods was received at the Illinois Department of Corrections from the Cook County Department of Corrections on December 14, 1984, for all of the above charges, with time considered served since March 18, 1984. Woods was discharged on January 3, 1986. (PSI, lines 431-439.)
The defendant argues that based upon this criminal history he should be assessed six criminal history points under the USSG. Invoking Application Note 3 to USSG § 4A1.2, defendant asserts that this court should assess a total of three criminal history points for the 1983 sentences and another three criminal history points for the 1984 sentences.
USSG § 4A1.2(a)(2) provides that prior sentences imposed in "unrelated cases" are to be counted separately for purposes of a defendant's criminal history. Prior sentences imposed in "related cases," however, are to be treated as one sentence for purposes of the criminal history. U.S.S.G. § 4A1.2(a)(2). Application Note 3 to USSG § 4A1.2 elaborates on the term "related cases":
Cases are considered related if they (1) occurred on a single occasion, (2) were part of a single common scheme or plan, or (3) were consolidated for trial or sentencing.
U.S.S.G. § 4A1.2, comment. (n.3)
The first category of "related" cases — cases occurring on a "single occasion" — is inapplicable here. All six prior sentences imposed on defendant resulted from crimes which he committed on six different occasions. Defendant does not argue otherwise.
At first glance it would appear that the third category of "related" cases — cases "consolidated for trial or sentencing" — works in defendant's favor. After all, the state court consolidated defendant's May 21, 1983 attempted armed robbery conviction with his June 13, 1983 robbery conviction for purposes of sentencing. Similarly, the court consolidated defendant's May 23, 1983 and May 29, 1983 robbery convictions for purposes of sentencing.
This court rejects, however, the notion that cases are related solely because they were consolidated for sentencing. This court's view is supported by the recent case of United States v. Elmendorf, 945 F.2d 989 (7th Cir.1991). In Elmendorf the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, in addressing the issue of career offender...
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U.S. v. Woods, 92-1016
...sentence, Judge Holderman sentenced Woods to 78 months in prison. In accordance with its earlier written opinion, United States v. Woods, 780 F.Supp. 1201 (N.D.Ill.1991), the district court stated that Woods' six prior state felony convictions were not related and therefore concluded that h......