Opinion ID: 222147
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Procedural Error Analysis

Text: The Supreme Court has instructed appellate courts to ensure that the district court committed no significant procedural error. Gall, 552 U.S. at 51, 128 S.Ct. 586. Having sorted through Ms. Lente's arguments, we are left with three procedural challenges: improper fact-finding about SR 47, failure to address mitigating circumstances on recklessness, and failure to address the need to avoid unwarranted sentencing disparities. We address them in order of significance.
Ms. Lente argues the district court committed procedural error when it failed to address her argument that the government's proposed variant sentence of 18 years would create unwarranted sentencing disparities with sentences of similar offenses and offenders. This was Ms. Lente's main argument for a within-Guidelines sentence. The parties devoted substantial briefing and oral argument to this issue before the district court. See, e.g. R. Vol. 1 at 131-132, 138, 141, 151-56 (Ms. Lente's Objections to the PSR); id. at 213-214 (Government's Memorandum in Response to the PSR); id. Vol. 3 at 91-94, 202, 207-210 (Government's argument at sentencing hearing); id. at 168, 172-73, 191-93, 211 (Ms. Lente's argument at sentencing hearing); id. Vol. 1 at 351-52, 358, 362 (Ms. Lente's Sentencing Objections). Ms. Lente submitted Sentencing Commission data to the district court on manslaughter sentences from 2001 to 2009. The data aggregate sentences for both involuntary and voluntary manslaughter, so the sentences themselves are probably higher than they would be if only involuntary manslaughter were the data set. To put Ms. Lente's sentence in context, the year with the highest median percentage increase over the maximum end of the Guidelines range was 2004 at 68.6 percent. Ms. Lente's sentence was 237 percent above the end of the range. The year with the highest median number of months above the maximum end of the range was 2009 at 49.05 months. Ms. Lente's sentence was 135 months above the end of the range. The highest average sentence was 65.8 months in 2009. Ms. Lente's sentence was 192 months. The data on manslaughter non-departure upward-variance sentences after Booker from 2005 to 2009 add further perspective. The average portion of such cases per year was eight percent. The average median percentage increase was 43.1 percent (237 percent for Ms. Lente). The average median number of additional months was 24 (135 for Ms. Lente). Over the past five years, an upward variance that exceeded 43 percent occurred in only four percent of all manslaughter cases, and an increase of over 24 months above the Guidelines occurred in only four percent of such cases. In addition, Ms. Lente presented to the district court comparative involuntary manslaughter cases and argued that the defendants in these cases with more serious criminal histories received much lower sentences than Ms. Lente received in her first sentencing. See United States v. Pettigrew, 468 F.3d 626 (10th Cir.2006) (126 months for involuntary manslaughter, two assaults causing serious injury, and misdemeanor assault from DUI accident; criminal history included second degree murder); United States v. Jones, 332 F.3d 1294 (10th Cir.2003) (71 months for three counts of involuntary manslaughter from DUI accident; criminal history included five prior DUI convictions); United States v. Whiteskunk, 162 F.3d 1244 (10th Cir. 1998) (24 months for involuntary manslaughter; criminal history included prior DUI). Ms. Lente also cited to United States v. Wolfe, 435 F.3d 1289, 1294 (10th Cir.2006), as a comparable case where the defendant was convicted of two counts of involuntary manslaughter from a DUI accident, and, like Ms. Lente, had no criminal history points. In Wolfe, the district court initially departed upward and imposed a 41-month sentence. We reversed and remanded for resentencing because the district court departed upward to an extraordinary degree without sufficient explanation. See id. at 1305. The defendant in Wolfe was sentenced to 20 months on resentencing. See United States v. Wolfe , D.N.M. Case No. 03-cr-02056, R.Doc. 36 (Judgment entered April 5, 2006). Finally, Ms. Lente presented cases from outside the circuit to demonstrate that the variance recommended by the PSR and the government was far afield of the punishment for similar offenses and offenders. R. Vol. 1 at 153-154. For example, she cited to United States v. Kathman, 490 F.3d 520, 521-22 (6th Cir.2007), where a twenty-two year-old first offender killed two people in a DUI accident. The Sixth Circuit affirmed a sentence of 20 months for two counts of DUI involuntary manslaughter, which was a downward departure from the proposed Guidelines range of 41 to 51 months. Id. at 526. The government presented counterarguments to a few of these cases and responded with one case of its own, an unpublished decision from the Western District of Oklahoma, United States v. Leonard, W.D.Okla. Case No. 03-cr-203, R.Doc. 118 (Judgment entered October 26, 2004). The government argued that this case, which it characterized as a pre- Booker  case, demonstrated the problem with considering pre- Booker sentencing cases for comparative purposes. See R. Vol. 3 at 92-93. The government explained that in Leonard the court imposed an 87-month sentence for two counts of involuntary manslaughter and one count of serious bodily injury from a DUI accident, but the court also indicated in the alternative that it would impose a 120-month sentence if the Guidelines were determined to be unconstitutional. See id. We do not attempt to resolve which side had stronger comparative case examples or arguments. That is for the district court to resolve in the first instance and for this court to consider on substantive reasonableness review. The point here is to show that Ms. Lente presented to the district court a material, non-frivolous argument based on sentencing data and comparative cases on the need to avoid unwarranted sentencing disparities. The district court did not mention any of these cases or the sentencing data, and it did not address this sentencing factor after Ms. Lente devoted much of her briefing and argument to this issue. Even if Ms. Lente had not raised a specific argument on the sentencing-disparity issue, a sentencing court must consider the seven § 3553(a) factors, see Gall, 552 U.S. at 49-50, 128 S.Ct. 586, and [o]ne factor that a district court must consider in imposing an appropriate sentence is `the need to avoid unwarranted sentence disparities among defendants with similar records who have been found guilty of similar conduct. . . .' United States v. Martinez, 610 F.3d 1216, 1228 (10th Cir.), cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 131 S.Ct. 543, 178 L.Ed.2d 399 (2010) (quoting 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)(6)). Although the district court stated at the sentencing hearing that it took into account extensively the sentencing factors of 18 U.S.C. 3553(a)(1) through (7), R. Vol. 3 at 223, and stated in its sentencing decision that it carefully consider[ed] all the statutory factors set forth in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a), R. Vol. 1 at 440, there is no express mention of § 3553(a)(6) or any discussion of the apparent disparity between Ms. Lente's sentence and the sentences of other offenders, especially similar offenders. The government acknowledges that the district court did not expressly consider 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)(6) and its directive that sentences avoid unwarranted sentence disparities, Aplee. Br. at 49, but contends that this does not constitute procedural error because the court was not required to expressly consider this or any other factor on the record, see id. at 49-52. We disagree. The government relies primarily on United States v. Ruiz-Terrazas, 477 F.3d 1196 (10th Cir.2007), and United States v. Martinez-Barragan, 545 F.3d 894, 898 (10th Cir.2008). Both, however, were appeals of within -Guidelines sentences after the defendants had requested a below -Guidelines sentence. See Martinez-Barragan, 545 F.3d at 898, 902; Ruiz-Terrazas, 477 F.3d at 1198. When a district court imposes a within-Guidelines sentence, the court must provide only a general statement of its reasons, and need not explicitly refer to either the § 3553(a) factors or respond to every argument for leniency that it rejects in arriving at a reasonable sentence. Martinez-Barragan, 545 F.3d at 903 (quotation and citation omitted). This precedent is inapplicable here because Ms. Lente's sentence is 135 months above the applicable Guidelines range. We have explained that, [u]nder 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a), the court must state . . . the reasons for its imposition of the particular sentence, and, if the sentence is . . . outside the [guidelines] range, . . . the specific reason for the imposition of a sentence different from that described, which reasons must also be stated with specificity in the written order of judgment and commitment. United States v. Pinson, 542 F.3d 822, 833 (10th Cir.2008) (quotations omitted). We further instructed that [t]he court must also address, in its statement of reasons, the material, non-frivolous arguments made by the defendant. Id.; see also United States v. Ausburn, 502 F.3d 313, 329 (3d Cir.2007) ([W]e have stated at least one concrete requirement to establish that the sentencing court gave meaningful consideration to the relevant § 3553(a) factors: the court must acknowledge and respond to any properly presented sentencing argument which has colorable legal merit and a factual basis.). Beyond the district court's saying at the sentencing hearing and in its written decision that it had considered all of the § 3553(a) factors, there is no further indication that the district court considered Ms. Lente's material, non-frivolous § 3553(a)(6) sentencing-disparity argument, which she supported with sentencing data and case examples. Our precedent does not allow us to presume that it did so. See Pinson, 542 F.3d at 833 (The district court is not required to recite any magic words to demonstrate that it has considered all of the relevant arguments, but we will not presume the district court weighed a party's arguments in light of the 3553(a) factors where the record provides no indication that it did so. (quotations omitted)); see also United States v. Harris, 567 F.3d 846, 854 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 130 S.Ct. 1032, 175 L.Ed.2d 632 (2009) ([W]hen a court has passed over in silence the principal argument made by the defendant even though the argument is not so weak as not to merit discussion, we do not have the assurance we need to satisfy ourselves that the defendant's individual circumstances have been thoroughly considered. (quotation omitted)). For us to conduct meaningful appellate review, of the district court's significant upward-variant sentence, the district court must expressly consider § 3553(a)(6) and address Ms. Lente's argument that her sentence would create unwarranted sentencing disparities. See Gall, 552 U.S. at 50, 128 S.Ct. 586; Rita v. United States, 551 U.S. 338, 356, 127 S.Ct. 2456, 168 L.Ed.2d 203 (2007) (The sentencing judge should set forth enough to satisfy the appellate court that he has considered the parties' arguments and has a reasoned basis for exercising his own legal decisionmaking authority.); see also United States v. Merced, 603 F.3d 203, 215 (3d Cir.2010) ([I]t is not enough for the district court to carefully analyze the sentencing factors. A separate and equally important procedural requirement is demonstrating that it has done so. ). Because the district court failed to address Ms. Lente's material, non-frivolous § 3553(a)(6) sentencing-disparity argument, we conclude that the court committed procedural error. [9] See Pinson, 542 F.3d at 833 (The court must also address, in its statement of reasons, the material, non-frivolous arguments made by the defendant.).
Ms. Lente argues that the district court erred when it failed to address her argument that the circumstances leading up to the accident mitigated against a finding that she was acting with more than normal recklessness. She introduced undisputed evidence about pre-accident developments, including that her mother gave her the keys to her mother's car and told her to drive Mr. Tewahaftewa home because he was drunk and acting inappropriately. She argued these circumstances mitigated against a finding that she acted with excessive recklessness. See R. Vol. 1 at 132-133 (Objections to the PSR); id. Vol. 3 at 190-191 (Sentencing hearing), id. Vol. 1 at 362 (Objections to the Sentencing Decision). The district court identified three aggravating factors to support a finding of extraordinary recklessness. But it did not address Ms. Lente's undisputed evidence about Mr. Tewahaftewa's drunken behavior just before the accident, her mother's and Ms. Jojola's attempts to convince Mr. Tewahaftewa to leave Ms. Jojola's home on his own, Ms. Jojola's asking his sister to come get him, and Ms. Lente's mother's decision to give Ms. Lente the keys to her car and tell Ms. Lente to drive him home. The government argues that the district court was not required to to respond to every argument for leniency that it reject[ed] in arriving at a reasonable sentence. Aplee. Br. at 44 (quoting Martinez-Barragan, 545 F.3d at 898). The government's reliance on Martinez-Barragan is again misplaced because the defendant there was arguing for a downward variance from a within -Guidelines sentence. As we explained in Pinson, when a court imposes a sentence outside of the Guidelines range, it must address the material, non-frivolous arguments made by the defendant. 542 F.3d at 833. Ms. Lente's contention that the circumstances immediately preceding the crash mitigated against a finding that she was acting with excessive recklessness is a material, non-frivolous argument in response to the PSR and government's recommendation for a significant upward-variant sentence. The government also contends that the district court's written opinion demonstrates that the court carefully considered Lente's mitigation argument because the court explained that two years of Lente's sentence for count 3 would run concurrent because Mr. Tewahaftewa, unlike Lente's other victims, engaged in risky behavior. Aplee. Br. at 44. But this part of the district court's decision did not respond to Ms. Lente's mitigating-circumstances argument about her behavior leading up to the accident. It was based instead on the district court's conclusion that Mr. Tewahaftewa engaged in risky behavior by choosing to ride with Ms. Lente after he had consumed alcohol with her, as compared to the other victims who just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. R. Vol. 1 at 446 n. 9. The district court's decision did not address Ms. Lente's argument that her mother influenced her decision to drive by giving her the keys to her car and instructing her to drive Mr. Tewahaftewa home. This fact mitigated against a finding that Ms. Lente was acting with excessive recklessness. When it imposed a 135-month upward variance based in part on Ms. Lente's excessive recklessness, the district court should have addressed Ms. Lente's mitigating-circumstances argument. Cf. United States v. Vrdolyak, 593 F.3d 676, 682 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 131 S.Ct. 200, 178 L.Ed.2d 244 (2010) (concluding that district court erred in granting a downward variance when it gave without adequate articulated consideration, enormous weight to letters urging leniency for the defendant, while virtually ignoring the evidence that tugged the other way.). The court's failure to do so constitutes procedural error.
The district court took judicial notice of SR 47's location and characteristics to infer that a longtime local resident such as Ms. Lente would know it is a well-traveled road. R. Vol. 1 at 445. The court relied on this inference to support its finding that Ms. Lente was excessively reckless when she drove on SR 47 after a day of heavy drinking. Id. Ms. Lente complains that the court made assumptions about traffic conditions on SR 47 at the specific time and place of the accident and that she was not provided sufficient notice or opportunity to be heard on this issue. The court did not, as Ms. Lente suggests, do anything more than find SR 47 to be a well-traveled road and that Ms. Lente knew it to be so. These findings combined with a drunk driver's choosing to drive on SR 47 are relevant to recklessness and relate to the nature and circumstances of the offense. See § 3553(a)(1). Although more specific information about traffic congestion at the time and place of the accident may have been more probative, we find no procedural error in the court's considering the general nature of the road in its recklessness analysis. If Ms. Lente objects to the weight of this factor in determining recklessness, that is a substantive reasonableness argument, which we do not address here. As for Ms. Lente's procedural due process argument, although she received late notice about the SR 47 issue, the court afforded her a hearing on this subject. We do not discern a significant procedural error. Even if we did, we do not think its correction would have affected the sentence, and it is therefore harmless. We turn next to harmless error on the other procedural matters.