Opinion ID: 4549586
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Presentence Proceedings

Text: Following Carty’s conviction, the Probation Office prepared a presentence investigation report (“PSR”) for him. The PSR set Carty’s base offense level at 7. Probation increased Carty’s offense level by 18 because the intended loss amount of the offense was greater than $3,500,000 but less than $9,500,000. Probation also increased Carty’s offense level by 2 because the offense involved sophisticated means. With a total offense level of 27 and no criminal history, Carty’s sentence range under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines was 70–87 months. The Probation Office also recommended restitution in the amount of $1,922,520.02 to the School District. This amount was calculated as follows: $3,768,000.00 (the amount the School District paid pursuant to the NComputing Invoice) - $34,980.00 (300 installed NComputing devices multiplied by an actual cost of $116.60) - $955,500.00 (14,700 stored NComputing devices multiplied by $65, the price Firefly offered for them) - $854,999.98 (the amount the School District received in a civil settlement) $1,922,520.02 8 Case: 19-12239 Date Filed: 07/20/2020 Page: 9 of 19 Carty objected to the PSR’s loss determination. He first argued that the School District did not suffer pecuniary harm because the NComputing devices were delivered in working order and thus “the only loss [the School District] suffered was being deceived about the identity of the vendor.” Even if the “loss” were any amount the School District paid in excess of the GSA schedule price— which Carty, through his offense conduct, led the School District to believe it was paying—Carty argued the pricing information in the record compels a finding of no loss or a lower loss than that reflected in the PSR. The government agreed with Carty that the draft PSR incorrectly calculated the loss amount but rejected the idea that there was no loss. The government argued the loss amount should be set at $3,393,000. This was the NComputing Invoice amount, less the amount NComputing later offered the School District to buy back the devices ($25 per device, so $375,000 total). In the alternative, the government argued Carty inflated the price of the NComputing devices by $2,019,000. This was the amount in the NComputing Invoice, less what Progressive actually paid for the devices. Either way, the government noted, a 16-level increase for a loss amount falling between $1,500,000 and $3,500,000 would be proper. The PSR was edited to include an actual loss of $1,922,520.02 (the same as the preliminary restitution amount), resulting in a 16-level increase. 9 Case: 19-12239 Date Filed: 07/20/2020 Page: 10 of 19 Carty objected, as well, to the imposition of restitution. He said the School District was not a victim because it chose to keep the NComputing devices in storage, rather than use or sell them. In the alternative, he argued that the evidence at trial—rather than the price offered by Firefly or NComputing—should be the basis for determining the value of the devices in the School District’s possession. The Probation Office stood by its restitution recommendation from the original PSR.