Opinion ID: 4533869
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Jackson’s Guilty Plea and Sentencing Hearing

Text: On November 20, 2017, the District Court accepted Jackson’s guilty plea to all counts of a 28-count Indictment. Jackson entered his guilty plea without the benefit of a Plea Agreement. On February 22, 2018, the Government filed a Superseding Information that contained two counts, one for wire fraud and one for money laundering. On March 13, 2018, Jackson pleaded guilty to the Superseding Information. Jackson entered into a Plea Agreement in which the Government, in exchange for his guilty plea, agreed to recommend a two-level reduction (and potentially a three-level reduction at the Government’s discretion) for acceptance of responsibility. The United States Probation Office assembled a pre-sentence investigation report (“PSR”) that determined that Jackson’s total Offense Level was 31 and that he had a Criminal History Category of II. Based on these findings, the Probation Office calculated 5 Jackson’s Guidelines range to be 121 to 151 months’ imprisonment. In addition, the Probation Office determined that Jackson owed $1,742,275.25 in restitution to his victims. Jackson filed a sentencing memorandum in response to the PSR. He made three arguments relevant to this appeal. First, he argued that he should receive a reduction in his total Offense Level due to acceptance of responsibility. Second, he objected to the PSR’s restitution calculation and challenged the inclusion of two amounts—$175,000 and $74,500—that he purportedly owed to two of his victims, Pete and Carol Heath. Third, he argued that the sentencing factors under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) weighed in favor of granting a variance to a below-Guidelines sentence of 84 months. Jackson did not object to the calculation of his base Offense Level or criminal history category as indicated in the PSR. At the March 11, 2019 sentencing hearing the District Court noted Jackson’s argument that he should receive credit for acceptance of responsibility and his objection to the restitution amount. The District Court denied the request for a reduction for acceptance of responsibility and granted the request to reduce the restitution amount by $175,000. After the District Court made its rulings, Jackson’s counsel did not bring to the District Court’s attention his challenge to $74,500 that was also included in the Probation Office’s restitution calculation. After hearing the parties’ presentations and 6 victim impact statements, the District Court sentenced Jackson to, inter alia, 145 months’ imprisonment and ordered him to pay $1,567,275.25 in restitution. 2 In imposing this sentence, the District Court stated that it “ha[d] considered the factors set forth at 18 U.S.C.[] Section 3553(a),” App. 183, and set forth the following reasons. The District Court adopted the PSR without change and stated that (1) its sentence was within the Guidelines range, (2) Jackson’s financial crimes lasted for over a decade and inured to his substantial benefit, (3) those crimes had a detrimental impact on at least 20 individuals, and (4) Jackson continued to engage in fraudulent conduct while under pre-trial supervision. Jackson, again, made no further objections during the hearing and instead timely filed this appeal.