Opinion ID: 2644531
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Reasonableness of Prison Sentence

Text: We consider Frazier’s reasonableness challenges to his prison sentence for abuse of discretion. United States v. Brown, 579 F.3d 672, 677 (6th Cir. 2009). Here, too, reasonableness has both procedural and substantive components. Id. A sentence is procedurally unreasonable if the court made a procedural error such as failing to properly calculate the Guidelines range. Id. Frazier raises two procedural claims, and both fail. First, he claims that the district court erred by - 11 - No. 12-3887 United States of America v. Frazier applying a five-level enhancement under U.S.S.G. § 2G2.2(b)(3)(B) for distributing child pornography for a thing of value but not for pecuniary gain. (Pro Se Br. 3-4.) Frazier waived this argument because he agreed that the enhancement applies. See United States v. Kincaide, 145 F.3d 771, 784 (6th Cir. 1998) (rejecting challenge to drug quantity calculation in PSR where the defendant agreed to the calculation, thus waiving the claim). Even if Frazier did not waive this argument, it was not plain error to apply the enhancement when Frazier joined a P2P network, allowing others to access files on his computer in exchange for access to files on their computers. Second, Frazier claims that the court erred by not awarding sentencing credit for time he spent on home arrest. (Pro Se Br. 6-15.) However, the “determination as to whether defendant was entitled to credit for . . . home confinement is properly made by the Attorney General after a defendant begins serving his custodial sentence.” United States v. McBride, 21 F.3d 429, 1994 WL 108989, at -3 (6th Cir. 1994) (unpublished table opinion) (relying on United States v. Wilson, 503 U.S. 329 (1992)). The district court did not commit procedural error in calculating Frazier’s prison sentence. Frazier also claims that his prison sentence is substantively unreasonable. (Appellant Br. 11.) “A sentence is substantively unreasonable if the district court selects a sentence arbitrarily, bases the sentence on impermissible factors, fails to consider relevant sentencing factors, or gives an unreasonable amount of weight to any pertinent factor.” United States v. Shaw, 707 F.3d 666, 674 (6th Cir. 2013) (internal quotation marks omitted). The court must take into account the totality of the circumstances. Gall v. United States, 552 U.S. 38, 51 (2007). If the sentence falls within the - 12 - No. 12-3887 United States of America v. Frazier recommended Guidelines range, we apply a rebuttable presumption of substantive reasonableness. Shaw, 707 F.3d at 674. Frazier’s 84-month sentence falls within the advisory Guideline range of 78 to 97 months, so it is presumptively reasonable. Frazier argues that the court should have given him a lesser sentence in light of the following factors: 1) Frazier’s role as the sole caretaker of his elderly grandmother, 2) Frazier’s lack of any history of significant incarceration, which indicates that any term of incarceration would have a deterrent effect, 3) Frazier’s level of cooperation, which he contends warranted a more significant departure than the 10% reduction that he received, and 4) the fact that Frazier’s offense involved only 65 images, none of which he had produced, which was a “lesser scale” than comparable offenders. (Appellant Br. 13-15.) In his pro se brief, Frazier reiterates the concern that the court did not adequately consider the burden on his elderly grandmother, who requires twenty-four-hour care and who does not have other relatives or money to provide for her needs. (Pro Se Br. 18-19.) He also re-emphasizes his claim that his sentence is disparate as compared to other offenders. (Pro Se Br. 15-17.) The court certainly considered all of these sentencing factors; the argument appears to be that the court gave the factors an unreasonably small amount of weight. It is true that the court gave little weight to the issue of Frazier’s elderly grandmother; rather, it concluded that it would be a wrong use of the court’s discretion to make sympathy for the grandmother a predominate consideration in light of the public-safety concerns and the need to - 13 - No. 12-3887 United States of America v. Frazier remove Frazier from the community. Instead, it gave Frazier time to make arrangements for her before his prison sentence would begin. A defendant’s family ties or responsibilities, though not ordinarily relevant, may be considered if the defendant’s incarceration would cause a substantial, direct, and specific loss of essential caretaking to a family member, but a departure has to be weighed against the seriousness of the offense. U.S.S.G. § 5H1.6, cmt. 1; see also U.S.S.G., Ch. 5, Pt. H (noting that such disfavored factors may be considered to the extent they are present to an “unusual degree”). We do not review the refusal of the court to exercise its discretion to effect a permissive downward departure under § 5H1.6 unless the record shows that the court was not aware of its discretion. United States v. Thompson, Nos. 98-5938, 98-5988 1999 WL 970290, at  (6th Cir., Oct. 15, 1999). Here, the court was aware of its discretion and chose not to exercise it in light of the public-safety concern. Cf. United States v. Bistline, 665 F.3d 758, 767 (6th Cir. 2012) (downward departure for defendant’s role in caretaking for ill wife was improper); United States v. Christman, 607 F.3d 1110, 1120 (6th Cir. 2010) (reversing a district court decision to mitigate a sentence based on the defendant’s role as caretaker of an elderly relative because nursing home care was available though costly). Frazier’s arguments concerning his criminal history and the assistance he gave to the government have little merit. The court considered Frazier’s two prior crimes involving incidents with minors, neither of which resulted in jail time. The primary significance of those prior crimes, however, was that they increased the public-safety concern because they were sex-related offenses. In combination with the psychological report showing that Frazier is a pedophile, this was a - 14 - No. 12-3887 United States of America v. Frazier reasonable conclusion. The court also considered Frazier’s assistance, but gave a lesser departure than requested because, through no fault of Frazier’s, the assistance did not result in any leads. This court has no authority to consider the extent of a substantial assistance departure. United States v. Jones, 417 F.3d 547, 551 (6th Cir. 2005). Frazier’s last argument is that the court did not properly consider the sentencing disparity between him and those responsible for a larger quantity of images, in light of the fact that he did not produce the images. He points to several cases where defendants responsible for more images received a lighter sentence. Under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)(6), a sentencing court is instructed to consider the need to avoid unwanted sentencing disparities among defendants with similar records. However, it is a national disparity, not a disparity between particular defendants that must be avoided. United States v. Houston, 529 F.3d 743, 752 (6th Cir. 2008). “[T]he Guidelines themselves represent the best indication of national sentencing practices.” Id. Where the court properly calculated the Guidelines range, the court has necessarily taken steps to avoid a national disparity. Id. Here, the court considered a potential disparity, but determined that Frazier was different from other defendants because of his risk to the community. Frazier’s arguments do not suggest that his sentence was disparate from defendants who presented similar risks to the community. Nor has he shown that his within-Guidelines sentence was improperly calculated. His sentence was not unreasonable. - 15 - No. 12-3887 United States of America v. Frazier