Opinion ID: 3051280
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Enhancement for Number of Images

Text: [3] Cannel contends that the government also breached the plea agreement by volunteering that the number of images had been incorrectly calculated, and by advocating the fivelevel enhancement. Cannel inaccurately characterizes the government’s actions. In its sentencing memorandum the government acknowledged that, as suggested by the PSR’s sentencing calculation, the parties had erroneously disregarded Application Note 4(B)(ii), which would have brought the total number of images to over 600 and resulted in an enhancement of five levels, rather than two levels. The government agreed that the PSR accurately assessed the number of images but added that “in order to avoid a breach of the plea agreement, the Government stands by its original plea agreement recommendation” with respect to the enhancement for the number of images involved in the offense. Although the government urged the court to overrule Cannel’s objection to the five-level enhancement because the objection was not supported by the facts or the relevant application note, the government only invoked the facts behind the five-level enhancement in support of its argument that the court should give a sentence at the high end of the sentencing range recommended by the government. The government’s sentencing memorandum presented a final adjusted offense level of 28. That number reflected all of the upward adjustments in the plea agreement (including a two-level, rather than five-level, enhancement for the number of images), but excluded the downward adjustment for acceptance of responsibility (for the reasons discussed above). [4] Thus the government’s final sentencing recommendation was consistent with the plea agreement, which permitted the government to withhold a recommendation for an adjustment for acceptance of responsibility if Cannel did not comply with the specified conditions. The plea agreement, moreover, permitted the government to seek any sentence within the applicable guideline range; the government recomUNITED STATES v. CANNEL 1921 mended a sentence of 97 months, which was at the top of the 78 to 97-month sentencing range dictated by the offense level of 28. AFFIRMED.