Source: http://openjurist.org/962/f2d/484/united-states-v-guerra
Timestamp: 2015-09-05 16:49:43
Document Index: 145808799

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 4', '§ 841', '§ 4', '§ 4', '§ 4', '§ 4', '§ 4', '§ 4']

962 F2d 484 United States v. Guerra | OpenJurist
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962 F2d 484 United States v. Guerra 962 F.2d 484
UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee,v.Gerald GUERRA, Defendant-Appellant.
No. 91-5574.
F. Clark Adams, Asst. Federal Public Defender, Lucien B. Campbell, Federal Public Defender, Philip J. Lynch, Asst. Federal Public Defender, San Antonio, Tex., for defendant-appellant.
Appealing only his sentence, Gerald Guerra contends that his Guidelines § 4B1.1 career offender enhancement was improper, specifically challenging the holding that his predicate conviction for attempted burglary is a "crime of violence" within the meaning of the guideline. Because we find a guidelines application note dispositive, we AFFIRM.
Guerra pleaded guilty to distribution of cocaine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1). At sentencing, he unsuccessfully opposed the career offender enhancement requested by the government, asserting that attempted burglary was not one of the crimes of violence enumerated in the guideline and did not otherwise meet the guidelines definition.2 Guerra was sentenced to 168 months' imprisonment, at the bottom end of the applicable career offender sentencing range.3
The holding that Guerra's attempted burglary conviction qualifies as a predicate offense for § 4B1.1 enhancement is a conclusion of law, reviewed de novo. E.g., United States v. Shano, 955 F.2d 291, 294 (5th Cir.), cert. dismissed, --- U.S. ----, 112 S.Ct. 1520, 118 L.Ed.2d 201 (1992).
"A defendant is a career offender if (1) the defendant was at least eighteen years old at the time of the instant offense, (2) the instant offense of conviction is a felony that is either a crime of violence or a controlled substance offense, and (3) the defendant has at least two prior felony convictions of either a crime of violence or a controlled substance offense." U.S.S.G. § 4B1.1. The term "crime of violence" is defined in § 4B1.2 as
U.S.S.G. § 4B1.2(1)(i)-(ii). Importantly for this appeal, application note 1 in the official commentary to § 4B1.2 specifies that "[t]he term[ ] 'crime of violence' ... include[s] the offense[ ] of ... attempting to commit such offense[ ]." U.S.S.G. § 4B1.2, comment. (n.1).