Opinion ID: 344498
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: application of the dangerous special offender statute

Text: 20 After the defendant was indicted and before the defendant was tried, the government filed a petition against the defendant under 18 U.S.C. § 3575, entitled: Increased sentence for dangerous special offenders, Title X of the 1970 Omnibus Crime Control Act. The petition alleged that the defendant was a special offender within § 3575(e)(1) on the basis of prior felony convictions; 2 the government offered to prove numerous allegations in support of its claim that the defendant was a dangerous offender under § 3575(f). 3 21 The court deemed defendant a special offender under (e)(1), on the basis of his previous convictions and incarceration. The court found defendant dangerous under (f), basing its finding on testimony of government agents that the defendant had negotiated with them for the sale of cocaine, although no narcotics were ever produced by the defendant; on the fact that defendant had breached a condition of bail during pendency of the instant charge by leaving the jurisdiction of the court, resulting in an increase in bail and the issuance of an arrest warrant to bring the defendant back within the jurisdiction; and that the defendant was in custody of another jurisdiction on a completely different charge. An additional factor cited by the court in its finding of dangerousness was the similarity of conduct involved in the instant offense and the conduct testified to by government agents in the negotiation for the sale of cocaine. Specifically the court noted common characteristics of cross-country travel and large quantities of money. The court recognized a penchant in the defendant for acquiring large amounts of money illegally and the defendant's disposition to continue such dealings despite repeated failures. The court sentenced the defendant to ten years and one day imprisonment. 4 22 Defendant challenges his increased sentence under the dangerous special offender statute as unconstitutional. 5 23 Under § 3575(a) the government may file a notice that defendant is a dangerous special offender subject to sentence under (b), with a twenty-five year maximum. Under (b), after conviction and prior to sentencing, the trial court, sitting without a jury, conducts a hearing to determine whether the defendant qualifies as a dangerous special offender under the criteria specified in the statute. The court may consider any information presented at the trial on the underlying felony, at the sentencing hearing, or contained in the pre-sentence report. Once the factual determinations of special and dangerous have been found by a preponderance of the information considered, the court may impose sentence upon the defendant to a maximum of 25 years, but not disproportionate in severity to the maximum term otherwise authorized. 24 Special offender status may be determined under any one of the following three categories of § 3575(e): 25 (1) the defendant has previously been convicted in courts of the United States, a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, a territory or possession of the United States, any political subdivision, or any department, agency, or instrumentality thereof for two or more offenses committed on occasions different from one another and from such felony and punishable in such courts by death or imprisonment in excess of one year, for one or more of such convictions the defendant has been imprisoned prior to the commission of such felony, and less than five years have elapsed between the commission of such felony and either the defendant's release, on parole or otherwise, from imprisonment for one such conviction or his commission of the last such previous offense or another offense punishable by death or imprisonment in excess of one year under applicable laws of the United States, a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, a territory or possession of the United States, any political subdivision, or any department, agency or instrumentality thereof; or 26 (2) the defendant committed such felony as part of a pattern of conduct which was criminal under applicable laws of any jurisdiction, which constituted a substantial source of his income, and in which he manifested special skill or expertise; or 27 (3) such felony was, or the defendant committed such felony in furtherance of, a conspiracy with three or more other persons to engage in a pattern of conduct criminal under applicable laws of any jurisdiction, and the defendant did, or agreed that he would, initiate, organize, plan, finance, direct, manage, or supervise all or part of such conspiracy or conduct, or give or receive a bribe or use force as all or part of such conduct. 28 In addition to finding that the defendant is a special offender, the court determines whether the defendant is also a dangerous offender. 29 A defendant is dangerous for purposes of this section if a period of confinement longer than that provided for such felony is required for the protection of the public from further criminal conduct by the defendant. 18 U.S.C § 3575(f). 30 The constitutionality of this statute has been upheld as an enhanced sentencing procedure, analogous to recidivist statutes. United States v. Stewart, 531 F.2d 326 (6th Cir. 1976), cert. den., 426 U.S. 922, 96 S.Ct. 2629, 49 L.Ed.2d 376; United States v. Holt, 397 F.Supp. 1397 (N.D.Tex.1975), modified on ground not relevant here, United States v. Bailey, 537 F.2d 845 (5th Cir. 1976). This view was rejected in United States v. Duardi, 384 F.Supp. 874 (W.D.Mo.1974), aff'd on other grounds, 529 F.2d 123 (8th Cir. 1975), in which the court held that application of the statute extends beyond ordinary sentencing procedure and is violative of due process. 31 Under the usual sentencing procedure, the court may consider many factors in determining the type and length of sentence. A sentencing judge is not limited to information presented in open court by witnesses under oath, but may exercise wide discretion in receiving information on which to base a sentencing decision. Williams v. New York, 337 U.S. 241, 246, 69 S.Ct. 1079, 1082, 93 L.Ed. 1337 (1949). 32 If we were to regard Title X as a revision of the Criminal Code whereby, as to any violation of Title 18 for which the formerly prescribed maximum was less than 25 years, the maximum had been increased to 25 years, consideration of the matters enumerated in § 3575 would fall clearly within the normal sentencing structure. That is, if the history and language of § 3575 would support a construction that Congress had declared every offense for which a maximum of less than 25 years had previously been provided, now potentially punishable by a sentence of 25 years, then the findings of special and dangerous would be guidelines to structure the discretion of the judge in sentencing a convicted offender. Under this interpretation, all elements of the offense meriting a possible sentence of 25 years would have been established beyond a reasonable doubt with the right to a jury trial. Judicial findings of special and dangerous to a preponderance of the evidence would involve considerations of factors routinely examined by a judge in sentencing, including past convictions, likelihood of future offenses, and the safety of society. However, such legislative intent cannot be inferred from the language of § 3575. 33 Under the present language, it seems clear that the maximum specified in the statute defining the offense is still the maximum for all cases unless separate and further factual determinations are made under § 3575. Additional factual determinations of special and dangerous must be made after a verdict of guilty to support the imposition of a sentence greater than the sentence normally applicable to the crime. The necessity of additional findings of fact which potentially subject the defendant to increased incarceration raises the questions of due process argued by defendant as not inherent in the ordinary sentencing procedure. 34 Defendant argues, in part, that subsection (b) of the statute denies due process because the findings (of special offender status and of dangerousness) on which an increased sentence must be predicated may be based on a preponderance of the information considered and need not be established beyond a reasonable doubt. He contends that since these findings expose a defendant to substantially increased confinement, such findings must be supported by proof beyond a reasonable doubt, and he cites In re Winship, 397 U.S. 358, 364, 90 S.Ct. 1068, 25 L.Ed.2d 368 (1970); United States ex rel. Stachulak v. Coughlin, 520 F.2d 931, 935 (7th Cir. 1975); note, Recidivist Procedures, 40 N.Y.U.L.Rev. 332, 341-43 (1965). He also argues that the Sixth Amendment requires a trial by jury. 35 Section 3575(b) prescribes the procedure to be followed, requires only that a finding be based on a preponderance of the information considered, and provides for determination by the court without a jury. Subsection (b) applies both to the finding that a defendant is a special offender under (e), and that he is dangerous under (f). Thus at first glance, defendant's challenge to the procedure as a denial of due process would seem to go to both findings. Defendant has, however, conceded on appeal the adequacy of the finding, in his case, that he is a special offender. 6 36 Based on that concession, we find that defendant is not in a position to challenge the validity of the procedure on which the finding that he is a special offender is predicated, and we need only consider his challenges insofar as they relate to the procedure and standards for, and the finding of, dangerousness. 37 We make plain, however, that the question of the constitutional validity of the procedure prescribed in § 3575(b) when it underlies a finding that a defendant is a special offender may well be different from the question of constitutional validity of the same procedure when it underlies a finding that a defendant is dangerous as defined in § 3575(f). In rejecting (as we do) defendant's due process challenges to the finding that he is dangerous, we by no means decide the merits of the same challenges to the finding that he is a special offender if that finding were properly before us. 38 We note a marked difference between the type of issue to be decided by a finding of special offender status under § 3575(e) and the type of issue decided by a finding of dangerousness under § 3575(f). The former involves historical facts, either prior convictions (under (e)(1) or the character and concomitants of the offensive conduct (under (e)(2) and (3)). The latter essentially involves both evaluation of the character of the defendant and a prediction of future conduct, matters which are traditionally left to wide discretion of a sentencing court. Because of this difference, we conclude that the essential function of a finding of special offender, under (e), is to expose the defendant to a sentence of imprisonment longer than the maximum prescribed by the statute under which he has been charged and convicted, but not exceeding twenty-five years, and that the essential functions of a finding of dangerousness, under (f), is to determine whether and to what extent a sentence in excess of the maximum for the particular offense is appropriate. 39 Particularly with respect to (e)(1), we note that its implementation is analogous to a recidivist statute: determination of prior convictions and imprisonment subjects the defendant to liability of increased punishment for the instant crime. Under a recidivist statute, the finding whether a defendant is a habitual criminal is a determination independent of conviction on the present charge. Graham v. West Virginia, 224 U.S. 616, 625, 32 S.Ct. 583, 586, 56 L.Ed. 917 (1912); see Chandler v. Fretag, 348 U.S. 3, 8, 75 S.Ct. 1, 4, 99 L.Ed. 4 (1954); Oyler v. Boles, 368 U.S. 448, 82 S.Ct. 501, 7 L.Ed.2d 446 (1962). 40 Based on the foregoing analysis of the relationship between (e) and (f) of § 3575, i. e., that a finding under (e) exposes the defendant to an increase in maximum to 25 years and that the finding under (f) relates to the determination of the length of sentence within that range, and in the light of our conclusion that defendant in the case before us has no standing to challenge the procedure underlying the finding that he is a special offender under (e) we proceed to consider the challenge to the procedure prescribed by § 3575(b), but only as it relates to § 3575(f). 41 Once again, comparing § 3575(e)(1) with a recidivist statute, we note that recidivist statutes often require imposition of an increased sentence once the defendant's prior conviction is established. Under § 3575, however, the trial judge retains discretion in sentencing. The court may prescribe increased incarceration if necessary for the safety of society. The factors considered in determining dangerousness are not different from factors normally considered by a judge in the sentencing process, nor is the discretion vested in the trial court any greater than discretion usually exercised in sentencing. Many procedural protections applicable upon trial of guilt or innocence do not apply to the determination of sentence after conviction. The court is not restricted at that stage to information received in open court. Williams v. New York, 337 U.S. 241, 250-51, 69 S.Ct. 1079, 1085, 93 L.Ed. 1337 (1949). 42 Nor do we find that the term dangerous is overly broad or vague for purposes of sentencing. United States v. Stewart, 531 F.2d 326, 336 (6th Cir. 1976), cert. den., 426 U.S. 922, 96 S.Ct. 2629, 49 L.Ed.2d 376; United States v. Holt, 397 F.Supp. 1397, 1399 (N.D.Tex.1975), modified on ground not relevant here, United States v. Bailey, 537 F.2d 845 (5th Cir. 1976), contra United States v. Duardi, 384 F.Supp. 874, 886 (W.D.Mo.1974), aff'd on other grounds, 529 F.2d 123 (8th Cir. 1975). Factors routinely considered by a sentencing judge are the defendant's past record, the probation officer's report, the nature of the present offense and the defendant's attitude. United States v. Holt, supra, at 1399. Likelihood of future criminality and the potential danger to society are determinations implicit in sentencing decisions. The concept of dangerousness as defined in § 3575 is a verbalization of considerations underlying any sentencing decision. 43 The defendant's contentions that the findings of dangerousness were based on insufficient evidence and were tainted by prejudicial information related by the prosecution are without merit. As set out previously in the margin, the trial judge struck certain allegations from the dangerous special offender petition on the basis that they were indictable offenses and consideration of them in increasing sentence would have denied defendant's right to indictment by grand jury. Even as excised, the record supports the court's conclusion that the defendant would pose a future threat to society and was deserving of an increased period of incarceration. The record discloses that the trial court refused repeated offers of proof made by the prosecutors because of the prejudicial nature of the information. 44 A further contention of the defendant is that the absence of standards to guide prosecutorial discretion in utilizing the statute violates due process and the guarantee against cruel and unusual punishment. Since we regard the application of § 3575(e)(1) and (f) to be essentially the same as a recidivist statute, this challenge is laid to rest by Oyler v. Boles, 368 U.S. 448, 456, 82 S.Ct. 501, 506, 7 L.Ed.2d 446 (1962). Without a claim by the defendant that prosecutorial selectivity has been based on an unjustifiable standard such as race, religion or other arbitrary classification, there is no basis for finding denial of equal protection. 45 To summarize, we treat, in substance, the determination that a defendant is a special offender, under (e), as a factual determination which exposes him to an increased sentence, up to 25 years, and the determination that he is dangerous, under (f), and therefore should be confined for more than the maximum provided for the offense charged as the exercise of discretion traditional in sentencing. Although noting the existence of serious due process questions as to the determination under (e) by the procedure described in (b), we do not reach these questions because of defendant's concession as to the adequacy of the finding that he is a special offender. We find no lack of due process in the procedure for the finding that he is dangerous under (f), and in fixing his sentence in excess of the maximum prescribed for the offense charged. 46 Defendant's contention that the sentence imposed is so disproportionate as to be cruel and unusual punishment is insubstantial: the sentence is but a day greater than the maximum sentence authorized for the underlying felony. Cf. Hart v. Coiner, 483 F.2d 136 (4th Cir. 1973). 47 The judgment is AFFIRMED. 48