Opinion ID: 162770
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Role of Recidivism

Text: 10 Turning to defendant's primary argument, we note that the relevant statutory subject matter of [§ 1326(b)] is recidivism. Almendarez-Torres, 523 U.S. at 230, 118 S.Ct. 1219. Recidivism is defined as [a] tendency to relapse into a habit of criminal activity or behavior. Black's Law Dictionary 1021 (7th ed.2000). The words tendency and habit are terms inclusive of a person's total criminal history, not just to some crime which may happen to immediately precede a sentencing. 11 Further, the Supreme Court, in discussing the statute, explicitly referred to the obligation of a sentencing judge to take into account an offender's prior record in every case. Almendarez-Torres, 523 U.S. at 230, 118 S.Ct. 1219 (citing U.S.S.G. §§ 4A.1.1 and 4A1.2). The district judge here understood that duty and referred to her belief that case law and certainly [the] statute and the Sentencing Guidelines not only permit but require me to look at this defendant's criminal history in order to establish an appropriate sentence under the statute. R. Vol. II at 6. There is no indication in case law or in commentary to support defendant's position that only the immediately preceding felony is relevant here.