Opinion ID: 3002212
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: “Any Other Felony” Enhancement

Text: The Guideline that applies to forced labor convictions is U.S.S.G. § 2H4.1, which covers “peonage, involuntary servitude, and slave trade.” It establishes a base offense level of 22, and identifies several “special offense characteristics,” including one for another felony: (b)(4) If any other felony offense was committed during the commission of, or in connection with, the peonage or involuntary servitude offense, increase to the greater of: (A) 2 plus the offense level as determined above, . . . . See also U.S.S.G. § 2H4.1(b)(4), appl. n. 2. The Calimlims and the district court both took the position that all of their convictions were covered by § 2H4.1 and thus that there was no “other” felony offense that would support the enhancement. This argument overlooks entirely the actual offenses for which the Calimlims were convicted: violations of § 1589 Nos. 07-1112, 07-1113 & 07-1281 19 (forced labor) and § 1324(a)(1) (harboring an alien for private financial gain). The latter offense has its own sentencing Guideline, U.S.S.G. § 2L1.1. It is therefore “an[ ] other felony offense . . . other than an offense that is itself covered by [§ 2H4.1].” U.S.S.G. § 2H4.1(b)(4), appl. n. 2. The harboring conviction falls within the terms of § 2H4.1(b)(4) and should have triggered its application. “The bar on double counting comes into play only if the offense itself necessarily includes the same conduct as the enhancement.” United States v. Senn, 129 F.3d 886, 897 (7th Cir. 1997) (emphasis in original). There is nothing artificial about treating forced labor and harboring as two separate offenses. They are based on different conduct, and neither necessarily encompasses the other. See, e.g., Bradley, 390 F.3d at 148-50 (listing charges of forced labor but not harboring of Jamaican nationals). To state the obvious, even today, long after the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment, it is possible to violate the law by forcing an American into servitude just as one can force an alien into servitude. In no sense does forced labor necessarily imply that the victim is an alien. Similarly, it is possible to harbor an alien for private financial gain without forcing that person to work; the gain might come from the use of valuable property that the alien has, or even from a ransom. The enhancement called for by § 2H4.1(b)(4) should have been applied here.