Opinion ID: 789274
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Whether the district court's decision violated Murdock's rights under Blakely and Booker

Text: 54 Murdock argues that his sentence should be reversed and remanded under Blakely, because the issue of the amount of loss was not submitted to a jury for determination beyond a reasonable doubt. The rule announced in Blakely was extended by the Supreme Court in its recent opinion in Booker, in which the Court concluded that the Sixth Amendment prevents federal judges from making factual determinations that increase a defendant's sentence beyond that which is authorized on the basis of facts established by a plea of guilty or a jury verdict. Booker, ___ U.S. at ___, 125 S.Ct. at 756. In order to remedy this constitutional violation, the Court severed 18 U.S.C. § 3553(b)(1), the provision which made the Guidelines mandatory. Id. at 765. 55 We agree with the district court's determination in denying Murdock's motion for release pending appeal that Murdock's sentence does not pose a problem under Blakely or Booker, because the sentence imposed was authorized  solely on the basis of facts ...admitted by the defendant.  Blakely, ___ U.S. at ___, 124 S.Ct. at 2537; see also Booker, ___ U.S. at ___, 125 S.Ct. at 756. Murdock's plea agreement included an admission that the IRS levy on his sister's wages was $132,000, and that he caused the forged release to be sent with the intent to defraud the IRS of the amount it could collect under the levy. At his plea colloquy, Murdock admitted that he convinced an IRS clerk to send the forged release of levy to his sister's employer in order to allow Dr. Pitts to collect money that had been levied by the IRS. As will be discussed below, these facts are sufficient to authorize the district court's determination that the amount of loss was $132,000. Because facts sufficient to support the sentence were admitted by the defendant, his Sixth Amendment rights were not violated in this case. 56 We note that [t]here may be some federal criminal defendants whose cases were on direct review at the time the Supreme Court issued Booker who are entitled to remand even though their sentences are consistent with the Sixth Amendment. United States v. Milan, ___ F.3d. ___, 2005 WL 309934 (6th Cir. Feb. 10, 2005), slip op. at 8. This opinion should not be read to foreclose a defendant's argument, in the appropriate case, that this Court should vacate and remand his sentence on the ground that the district court regarded the Sentencing Guidelines as mandatory at the time of his sentencing. However, Murdock has made no such argument in this case, and we decline to do so on his behalf. 57