Opinion ID: 2978017
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Lewis’s Sentence

Text: Defendant Lewis was sentenced to 420 months in prison. He contends the sentence is procedurally unreasonable because the district court did not properly consider the § 3553(a) factors. He contends the sentence is substantively unreasonable because it is greater than necessary to comply with the purposes of sentencing. Both arguments ignore the fact that the district court imposed the shortest term of imprisonment that it could within its lawful discretion, 35 years, the very sentence which Lewis’s counsel asked the court to impose at sentencing. The district court duly calculated the applicable Guidelines range to be 78 to 97 months. Based on the crimes of conviction, however, the court had no authority to impose a sentence below the applicable statutory mandatory sentencing minimums, because the exceptions recognized at 18 U.S.C. § 3553(e) and (f) do not apply. See United States v. Branch, 537 F.3d 582, 594-95 (6th Cir. 2008); United States v. Franklin, 499 F.3d 578, 585-86 (6th Cir. 2007); United States v. Burke, 237 F.3d 741, 744 (6th Cir. 2001). The resulting sentence is undeniably long, but this is a product of legislative judgment, not judicial discretion. - 16 - Nos. 07-1652, 07-1711 United States v. Manjate and Lewis