Opinion ID: 202877
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Is Assault a Violent Crime in Maine?

Text: Duval also argues for the first time on appeal that even if his assault conviction was for a felony, it was not for a violent crime. Duval argues that because the charging documents and plea agreement provide no indication as to the nature of the assault that he committed, we must find that he engaged in the minimum level of culpable conduct punishable under the assault statute, i.e., recklessly causing offensive physical contact, and that this conduct would not qualify as a violent crime. Because Duval did not raise this objection to his sentence below, we review that objection for plain error. United States v. Bennett, 469 F.3d 46, 51 (1st Cir.2006). Plain error requires that the defendant show that (1) that an error occurred (2) which was clear or obvious and which not only (3) affected the defendant's substantial rights, but also (4) seriously impaired the fairness, integrity, or public reputation of judicial proceedings. Id. (quoting United States v. Duarte, 246 F.3d 56, 60 (1st Cir.2001)). We detect no plain error in the district court's determination that a conviction in Maine for simple assault constitutes a crime of violence for the purposes of the ACCA. In United States v. Nason, we explicitly stated that both variants of assault regulated under Maine's general-purpose assault statute necessarily involve the use of physical force, and concluded that a conviction in Maine for simple assault qualified as a crime of domestic violence for the purposes of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9). 269 F.3d 10, 21 (1st Cir.2001). Nason is the only case cited by either party to have interpreted the Maine assault and battery statute, and we cannot distinguish it in any meaningful way from the circumstances of Duval's case. Until such time as we revisit Nason en banc, see United States v. Allen, 469 F.3d 11, 17 (1st Cir.2006) (noting that, absent extraordinary circumstances, three-judge panels are bound by prior circuit panel decisions), we are bound to apply its holding that even offensive contact constitutes a violent felony under Maine's assault and battery statute. [7]