Opinion ID: 77212
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Sumbodo

Text: 146 Based on an adjusted offense level of 22 and a criminal history category of I, Sumbodo's sentencing guideline range was 41 to 51 months. Sumbodo was sentenced to serve a term of 44 months imprisonment. He raises several issues on appeal. (1) Role in the Offense 147 Sumbodo first argues that he should not have received a four-level enhancement for an aggravating role, pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 3B1.1(a), asserting that he was just another person in the conspiracy and did not have an organizing or leadership role. 148 This court reviews a sentencing court's determination of a defendant's role in the crime for clear error. United States v. Ramsdale, 61 F.3d 825, 830 (11th Cir.1995). Section 3B1.1(a) provides, If the defendant was an organizer or leader of a criminal activity that involved five or more participants or was otherwise extensive, increase by 4 levels. The commentary provides that in most instances, the defendant must have been the organizer, leader, manager, or supervisor of one or more other participants. See U.S.S.G. § 3B1.1, comment. n.2. In assessing a defendant's role in the offense, the factors the courts should consider include: 149 [1] the exercise of decision making authority, [2] the nature of participation in the commission of the offense, [3] the recruitment of accomplices, [4] the claimed right to a larger share of the fruits of the crime, [5] the degree of participation in planning or organizing the offense, [6] the nature and scope of the illegal activity, and [7] the degree of control and authority exercised over others. 150 U.S.S.G. § 3B1.1, comment. n.4. There can, of course, be more than one person who qualifies as a leader or organizer of a criminal association or conspiracy. Id. The mere status of a middleman or a distributor does not support enhancement under Section 3B1.1 for being a supervisor, manager, or leader. Section 3B1.1 requires the exercise of some authority in the organization, the exertion of some degree of control, influence, or leadership. United States v. Yates, 990 F.2d 1179, 1182 (11th Cir.1993). 151 Sumbodo does not dispute that the conspiracy involved five or more participants or was otherwise extensive. Instead, he argues that he was a mere intermediary between Matar Fall and the Indonesian applicants. Sumbodo contends that he was a cog in the wheel, just like Mr. Sasikin, just like Mr. Soeryanto. However, the record reflects that Sumbodo exercised authority over the organization by recruiting and instructing co-conspirators such as Soeryanto and Sasikin. Even though others may have had a larger role in the conspiracy, there was sufficient evidence to support the district court's imposition of a four-level aggravating role enhancement. Accordingly, the district court did not commit clear error. (2) Profit Motive 152 Sumbodo contends that he should have received a three-level reduction, pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 2L1.1(b)(1), because he did not act for profit, and the Government redacted the language in the indictment claiming that the criminal activity was for profit. Sumbodo alleges that he did not profit from the conspiracy, and the fact that the testimony showed that Fall charged Sumbodo less than Sumbodo charged his customers, thereby suggesting a profit motive for Sumbodo, was invalid because Fall lied about the amounts he received. 153 According to the transcript, it appears the Government only redacted in exchange for money out of certain counts in the indictment, including Count Twenty. Count Twenty applied to Sumbodo, charging him with encouraging and inducing a particular alien to reside in the United States, in violation of the law. The district court did not clearly err as to its finding that profit remained at issue as to the conspiracy charge in Count One. Based on the evidence of profit motive presented at trial, the Government notes it argued to the jury that Sumbodo profited from his activity in the conspiracy. 154 While there may be more than one permissible way to view the evidence concerning profit, the district court's choice between permissible views cannot be clear error. See Johansen v. Combustion Engineering, Inc., 170 F.3d 1320, 1335 n. 30 (11th Cir.1999). Because there was evidence that Sumbodo profited, the district court did not err in declining to apply a three-level downward departure. 155 (3) Application of U.S.S.G. § 2L2.1 156 Sumbodo argues that his base offense level should have been 11 pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 2L2.1, because that guideline is more appropriate to the offense in that it specifically addresses trafficking and false documents, rather than 12 pursuant to § 2L1.1, which relates to smuggling and harboring aliens. Sumbodo contends that this case is essentially about false documents and statements, not smuggling or harboring aliens. 157 Whether a particular guideline applies to a given set of facts is a question of law subject to de novo review. See Kirkland, 985 F.2d at 537. According to the guidelines, in the case of counts grouped together, the applicable offense level is the offense level for the most serious count, i.e., the highest offense level in the group. See U.S.S.G. § 3D1.3(a); United States v. Marseille, 377 F.3d 1249, 1254 (11th Cir.2004). 158 Sumbodo was convicted on three counts, including encouraging and inducing aliens to reside illegally in the United States, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(1)(A)(iv). Pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 3D1.2(b), Sumbodo's convictions were grouped because all offenses involved transactions connected by a common criminal objective and constituted part of a common scheme or plan. The base offense level for the conspiracy was determined to be 12 pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 2L1.1, based on the base offense level for the most serious offense for which Sumbodo was convicted, which was the § 1324(a)(1)(A)(iv) violation. See U.S.S.G.App. A. Thus, the district court correctly applied § 2L1.1 to determine Sumbodo's base offense level.