Opinion ID: 182569
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Timeliness of Petitioner's Arguments

Text: In this case, following the government's Rule 35(b) motion, Petitioner filed the following reasons in support of his arguments for a larger reduction than the government had requested: (1) he had provided more substantial assistance than had been contemplated by the initial plea deal; (2) his firearm conviction could have been a two-point sentencing enhancement, rather than a separate charge with a five-year mandatory minimum sentence; (3) the scope and breadth of his continuing criminal enterprise was less extensive than most such enterprises; (4) his criminal history category overrepresented his actual criminal history; (5) his money laundering conviction should have been subsumed within his continuing criminal enterprise conviction; and (6) the mother of two of his children had recently died, depriving them of a natural parent while he is incarcerated. Grant, 567 F.3d at 776. At the hearing on the government's Rule 35(b) motion, the district court rejected all but Petitioner's first argument: The Court is not here today to talk in terms of resentencing and bringing up issues of the two-point enhancement instead of a five-year consecutive charge. The Court is not here today to determine the scope and breadth of the ... continuing criminal enterprise that was not as extensive as many [such enterprises] and, therefore, a lesser sentence is warranted. The Court is not here to talk about or listen to whether the defendant's criminal history was overrepresented or whether the money laundering count should be subsumed within the [continuing criminal enterprise] or the defendant's family background, at all.... All I'm going to say is, I am not going to listen to any arguments, now or ever, with regard to sentences that have been agreed upon and which have been imposed. (Tr. at 6-7.) The government responded that Petitioner had maintained his right to argue for a greater reduction. The district court then stated as follows: The issues that you're referring to are guideline issues and Section 3553(a) issues that the Court entertains at the time of sentencing, initially, not at the time of a Rule 35 motion. Now, if you want to argue that your assistance has been over and above what everyone defined as being substantial at the outset, then you can argue that, and that's a relevant argument, and I'm more than willing to listen to that.... But with regard to any guideline argument or any of the other issues that were brought up in the memorandum, I will not listen to. ( Id. at 10-11.) As the transcript of the proceedings before the district court makes clear, the court summarily dismissed five of Petitioner's six arguments as untimely. This was error, inasmuch as the district court had the discretion to hear the balance of Petitioner's arguments. Since the district court erroneously found that it could not rather than would not consider these arguments, the decision should be vacated and the case remanded to the district court for reconsideration. See, e.g., United States v. Chapman, 532 F.3d 625, 629 (7th Cir.2008) (upholding district court's consideration of prior criminal histories and the seriousness of offenses in the context of a Rule 35(b) motion).