Opinion ID: 781604
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: issues

Text: 5 The second subsection of the statute for drug possession with intent to distribute 2 delineates different penalty provisions based on drug quantity and other factors. 3 See 21 U.S.C. § 841(b). Three such provisions are relevant here. Defendants responsible for an unspecified amount of crack are exposed to a maximum sentence of twenty years under § 841(b)(1)(C), or thirty years if the defendant has a prior drug offense conviction. Defendants responsible for five or more grams of crack are exposed to five to forty years in prison, or ten years to life for defendants with a prior felony drug offense conviction under § 841(b)(1)(B). Finally, defendants responsible for at least fifty grams of crack are sentenced under § 841(b)(1)(A), which carries a possible penalty of ten years to life, or twenty years to life for defendants who have a prior conviction for a felony drug offense. 6 The jury convicted Goodine of possession with intent to distribute at least five grams (but less than fifty grams) of crack. Strictly following the jury's conviction, Goodine (who has a prior conviction for a felony drug offense) would be subject to a ten-year mandatory minimum sentence under § 841(b)(1)(B). However, the judge determined that Goodine was responsible for 309.2 grams of crack and sentenced him to the mandatory minimum sentence under § 841(b)(1)(A) — twenty years. 7 Goodine asserts that § 841(b)(1)(A), (B), and (C) are different crimes with drug quantity as the differing element, and that because the government only proved beyond a reasonable doubt that he was responsible for five grams, he could only be sentenced to a ten-year mandatory minimum sentence under § 841(b)(1)(B). Goodine challenges the legal decision of the district court to sentence him under § 841(b)(1)(A) instead of § 841(b)(1)(B). 8 The government must prove every element of a crime beyond a reasonable doubt. See In re Winship, 397 U.S. 358, 364, 90 S.Ct. 1068, 25 L.Ed.2d 368 (1970). However, mere sentencing factors do not require such proof. Patterson v. N.Y., 432 U.S. 197, 207, 97 S.Ct. 2319, 53 L.Ed.2d 281 (1977) (holding that the State need not prove beyond a reasonable doubt every fact, the existence or nonexistence of which it is willing to recognize as ... affecting... the severity of the punishment). While the legislature is generally free to identify elements and sentencing factors, there are constitutional limits to this power. McMillan v. Pennsylvania, 477 U.S. 79, 86, 106 S.Ct. 2411, 91 L.Ed.2d 67 (1986). We must determine whether drug quantity is an element of offenses under § 841 that must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt, or merely a sentencing factor that may be determined by the judge by a preponderance of the evidence.