Opinion ID: 2982784
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Consecutive Sentencing Claim

Text: We note in passing that, even if we were to consider Watkins’s claim on the merits, we would determine it to be without merit. We review the district court’s decision to impose a concurrent or consecutive sentence under an abuse-of-discretion standard. United States v. Berry, 565 F.3d 332, 342 (6th Cir. 2009). Section 5G1.3(c) from the 2013 edition of the Sentencing Guidelines2 provides that, in cases such as these, “the sentence for the instant offense may be imposed to run concurrently, partially concurrently, or consecutively to the prior undischarged term of imprisonment to achieve a reasonable punishment for the instant offense.” The Commentary to this subsection notes that, “in cases in which the defendant was on federal or state probation, parole, or supervised release at the time of the instant offense and has had such probation, parole, or supervised release revoked,” “the Commission recommends that the sentence for the instant offense be imposed consecutively to the sentence imposed for the revocation.” U.S.S.G. § 5G1.3(c) cmt. n.3(C) (2013). Nonetheless, the district court should also consider a number of other factors before deciding upon a sentence, including “the factors set forth in 18 U.S.C. § 3584 (referencing 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)).” Id. at cmt. n.3(A)(i); see also id. at cmt. n.3(A) (discussing other factors). The district court considered those factors here. It 2 Watkins was sentenced on December 12, 2013. 9 No. 14-5003 United States v. Watkins referred to Watkins’s lengthy criminal history and the fact that Watkins’s state sentences were for conduct unrelated to his federal sentence, thereby making it “generally clear the rationale under which it ha[d] imposed the consecutive sentence.” United States v. Johnson, 553 F.3d 990, 998 (6th Cir. 2009). While the district court took note of Watkins’s contrition, it ultimately decided, having considered the factors under 18 U.S.C. 3553(a), to run Watkins’s instant sentence consecutively to his two state sentences. The district did not abuse its discretion in reaching this conclusion.