Opinion ID: 567977
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Contentions concerning addendum to presentence report

Text: 18 Blythe raises three issues concerning the addendum to the presentence investigation report filed by the government: first, that a due process violation occurred as a result of its untimely delivery to Blythe; second, that the government misled him by suggesting initially that it would recommend a base offense level of 12 but later, in the addendum, raising the level to 24; and third, that the court considered only the addendum and not the full presentence report. We comment, as well, on the proper method for challenging the content to an addendum. 19
20 Blythe informs us that, under 18 U.S.C. § 3552(d), a presentence report must be given to the defendant and his counsel at least ten days prior to the date set for sentencing. He asserts that his receipt of the addendum to the presentence report on the day of sentencing was a denial of his due process rights under that provision. He further contends that the sentencing judge erred by failing to ask the defendant whether he had discussed both the report and the addendum with his counsel. 21 Mr. Blythe's argument goes astray at the initial point, when he omits a crucial portion of the statutory text: 22 The court shall assure that a report filed pursuant to this section is disclosed to the defendant, the counsel for the defendant, and the attorney for the Government at least ten days prior to the date set for sentencing, unless this minimum period is waived by the defendant. 23 18 U.S.C. § 3552(d) (emphasis added). The defendant may waive that period by failing to assert his rights at the appropriate time. United States v. Busche, 915 F.2d 1150, 1151 (7th Cir.1990). In this case neither Blythe nor his lawyer asked for additional time. Answering questions by the court, the defendant stated that he had looked at the presentence report and had no objection to it. Despite numerous opportunities before and during the sentencing hearing, he did not inform the court that he wanted to invoke his entitlement to the ten-day period. The burden of asserting that ten-day period is placed on the defendant rather than the judge; a defendant's silence surrenders any rights he may have had under § 3552(d). 24 By saying that the defendant may waive the 10 days in which to study the presentence report, § 3552(d) gave the defendant charge of the timing. Nothing in the text or structure of the law implies that the district court must initiate a colloquy along the lines of Fed.R.Crim.P. 11(c) to determine whether the accused understands this. Defendants therefore may surrender their right under § 3552(d) by participating in sentencing without objection. 25 Id. We find that Blythe waived his right to a ten-day review period under § 3552(d) by failing to assert it at the appropriate time. As we said in Busche, a defendant's election to participate in sentencing without objection, whether advertent or not, is conclusive. Id. 26 The court was not asked to postpone the sentencing hearing, and it did not. Was Blythe significantly prejudiced because the hearing was conducted on the same day that the addendum was filed? Certainly not. Nothing in the addendum was new; it clearly and fairly presented both parties' objections to the presentence report and offered the probation office's response. Blythe had long known that 24 was the government's recommended base level, and he had agreed to it in the plea agreement filed May 17, 1990. Furthermore, the court had before it defense counsel's written objections to the initial offense level, and heard his oral arguments on this issue at the hearing. After reviewing the transcript of the hearing, we find that the court fully accorded the defendant and his counsel an opportunity to comment upon the probation officer's determination and on other matters relating to the appropriate sentence, as required by Fed.R.Crim.P. 32. Under the circumstances herein, no miscarriage of justice can possibly be found in the court's holding of the sentencing hearing on the day that the addendum was filed. We hold that the court committed no plain error by proceeding with the sentencing. 27
28 We note that Blythe points out only one difference between the original presentence report and the addendum, namely the change in the sentencing recommendation from base level 12 to 24. Blythe asserts that the addendum falsely represented the government's recommended base level as 24 rather than 12, and that the government misled him by originally suggesting 12 as the appropriate guideline level. 29 We find this argument to be devoid of any merit. As was discussed above, the original plea agreement, signed by Blythe, recommended 24 as the appropriate offense level. The revised one, which omitted a recommendation after it was learned that Blythe was still dealing drugs, reiterated the recommended maximum sentence and gave no intimation that the government would propose a lower offense level. The defendant persisted in his guilty plea, nevertheless, and neither objected to the base level of 24 nor attempted to renegotiate the agreement. He was well aware of the government's objections to the original presentence report and its intention to recommend a level based on the figures to which Blythe had consented in the plea agreement. And yet, at the sentencing hearing, Blythe refused to withdraw or challenge the plea, even when the court advised him of his right to change his mind. We find nothing misleading in the government's treatment of Blythe. 1 30 We further find that the addendum to the presentence report neither misrepresented the government's position nor prejudiced the defendant. As was shown above, nothing in the addendum was new or surprising. The hearing transcript reflects that Blythe's attorney informed the court of the discrepancy in the base level recommendations, and the court considered the matter before ruling that 24 was the proper base level. There is no hint of error in the court's conduct. 31 We hold that no prejudice, substantial or otherwise, can be found in the court's consideration of the initial offense levels recommended in the presentence report, the addendum, and the hearing. Our review of the record reveals that the court sentenced Blythe on the basis of accurate information presented by both the defendant and the government, and committed no error at arriving at the base level of 24. 32 There are three other reasons that Blythe's claims concerning the addendum cannot succeed. The first is that Blythe had no right to the sentencing recommendation. Due process guarantees that a defendant see the presentence report in his case and have the opportunity to refute its contents before the district court; but there is no constitutional or statutory right to be informed of a particular sentencing recommendation made by the probation office to the district court. United States v. Heilprin, 910 F.2d 471, 474 (7th Cir.1990). Pursuant to Rule 32(c)(3) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, the court is required to permit the defendant to read the presentence report exclusive of any recommendation as to sentence. Fed.R.Crim.P. 32(c)(3)(A). 33 Second, if Blythe believed that the suggested base offense level of 24 was inaccurate, he was obliged under Rule 32(c)(3)(D) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure to inform the district court of any error in the presentence report prior to, or at, the sentencing hearing. When given the opportunity to challenge the report by the court, Blythe declined. By failing to raise his objection in a timely fashion, he has waived the right. United States v. Stout, 882 F.2d 270, 272 n. 3 (7th Cir.1989); United States v. Atehortua, 875 F.2d 149, 151 (7th Cir.1989). 34 And third, in any case a sentencing judge is not bound by the presentence report's recommendations concerning sentence. Heilprin, 910 F.2d at 475. The reasons given by the court for the sentence were well-founded and reflect no error whatsoever. Because we find that the Guidelines were correctly applied to findings of fact that were not clearly erroneous, we see no reason to disturb the sentence below. 18 U.S.C. § 3742(e). See United States v. Hassan, 927 F.2d 303, 306 (7th Cir.1991); United States v. Vopravil, 891 F.2d 155, 157 (7th Cir.1989). 35
36 The defendant claims that his probation officer informed him after the sentencing hearing that, according to standard filing procedure in the Southern District of Indiana, the court had before it only the addendum to the presentence report, and not the full report. He asserts that his due process rights were thereby violated, both because the addendum did not contain the matters comprehensively found in the original report, and because the addendum, which did not properly reflect the defendant's objection to the offense level of 24, was materially erroneous. 37 Such an allegation, arising from information outside the record before the court, will not be considered in this appeal. 38 The defendant's present citation to evidence outside the record to establish his version of the truth, which he alleges conflicts with the government's, is of no avail in the context of appellate review.... An appellant may not attempt to build a new record on appeal to support his position with evidence that was never admitted in the court below. 39 United States v. Phillips, 914 F.2d 835, 840 (7th Cir.1990) (citing cases). 40 We feel compelled to comment, however, that the defendant offers no evidence to support his allegation, and indeed the record refutes the claim. The district court told Blythe at the hearing that it had his presentence report, and invited the defendant to comment on it. The judge's questions and comments throughout the hearing reflect his full and thorough knowledge of the record before him, a record that certainly included the presentence report. Moreover, the addendum itself explained the defendant's position that the offense level should be 12. We will not entertain such empty allegations.