Opinion ID: 222147
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Failure to address mitigating circumstances

Text: Ms. Lente argues that the district court erred when it failed to address her argument that the circumstances leading up to the accident mitigated against a finding that she was acting with more than normal recklessness. She introduced undisputed evidence about pre-accident developments, including that her mother gave her the keys to her mother's car and told her to drive Mr. Tewahaftewa home because he was drunk and acting inappropriately. She argued these circumstances mitigated against a finding that she acted with excessive recklessness. See R. Vol. 1 at 132-133 (Objections to the PSR); id. Vol. 3 at 190-191 (Sentencing hearing), id. Vol. 1 at 362 (Objections to the Sentencing Decision). The district court identified three aggravating factors to support a finding of extraordinary recklessness. But it did not address Ms. Lente's undisputed evidence about Mr. Tewahaftewa's drunken behavior just before the accident, her mother's and Ms. Jojola's attempts to convince Mr. Tewahaftewa to leave Ms. Jojola's home on his own, Ms. Jojola's asking his sister to come get him, and Ms. Lente's mother's decision to give Ms. Lente the keys to her car and tell Ms. Lente to drive him home. The government argues that the district court was not required to to respond to every argument for leniency that it reject[ed] in arriving at a reasonable sentence. Aplee. Br. at 44 (quoting Martinez-Barragan, 545 F.3d at 898). The government's reliance on Martinez-Barragan is again misplaced because the defendant there was arguing for a downward variance from a within -Guidelines sentence. As we explained in Pinson, when a court imposes a sentence outside of the Guidelines range, it must address the material, non-frivolous arguments made by the defendant. 542 F.3d at 833. Ms. Lente's contention that the circumstances immediately preceding the crash mitigated against a finding that she was acting with excessive recklessness is a material, non-frivolous argument in response to the PSR and government's recommendation for a significant upward-variant sentence. The government also contends that the district court's written opinion demonstrates that the court carefully considered Lente's mitigation argument because the court explained that two years of Lente's sentence for count 3 would run concurrent because Mr. Tewahaftewa, unlike Lente's other victims, engaged in risky behavior. Aplee. Br. at 44. But this part of the district court's decision did not respond to Ms. Lente's mitigating-circumstances argument about her behavior leading up to the accident. It was based instead on the district court's conclusion that Mr. Tewahaftewa engaged in risky behavior by choosing to ride with Ms. Lente after he had consumed alcohol with her, as compared to the other victims who just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. R. Vol. 1 at 446 n. 9. The district court's decision did not address Ms. Lente's argument that her mother influenced her decision to drive by giving her the keys to her car and instructing her to drive Mr. Tewahaftewa home. This fact mitigated against a finding that Ms. Lente was acting with excessive recklessness. When it imposed a 135-month upward variance based in part on Ms. Lente's excessive recklessness, the district court should have addressed Ms. Lente's mitigating-circumstances argument. Cf. United States v. Vrdolyak, 593 F.3d 676, 682 (7th Cir.), cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 131 S.Ct. 200, 178 L.Ed.2d 244 (2010) (concluding that district court erred in granting a downward variance when it gave without adequate articulated consideration, enormous weight to letters urging leniency for the defendant, while virtually ignoring the evidence that tugged the other way.). The court's failure to do so constitutes procedural error.