Court Opinion

ID: 9364090
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-01-18 15:00:30.720384+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:15:35.764940
License: Public Domain

USCA11 Case: 22-10924    Document: 22-1      Date Filed: 01/18/2023   Page: 1 of 11

                                                            [PUBLISH]
                                    In the
                 United States Court of Appeals
                         For the Eleventh Circuit

                           ____________________

                                 No. 22-10924
                           Non-Argument Calendar
                           ____________________

        UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
                                                       Plaintiff-Appellee,
        versus
        VINATH OUDOMSINE,

                                                    Defendant-Appellant.

                           ____________________

                  Appeal from the United States District Court
                     for the Southern District of Georgia
                  D.C. Docket No. 3:21-cr-00013-DHB-BKE-1
                           ____________________
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        2                       Opinion of the Court                 22-10924

        Before LAGOA, BRASHER, and ED CARNES, Circuit Judges.
        ED CARNES, Circuit Judge:
               Vinath Oudomsine appeals his sentence of 36 months im-
        prisonment for wire fraud, which is an upward variance from the
        guidelines range of 8 to 14 months. The district court imposed that
        sentence after Oudomsine pleaded guilty to providing false infor-
        mation to obtain an $85,000 Economic Injury Disaster Loan under
        the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act. He chal-
        lenges the procedural and substantive reasonableness of his sen-
        tence.
                                          I.
               We ordinarily review the procedural reasonableness of a
        sentence for abuse of discretion. See Gall v. United States, 552 U.S.
        38, 51 (2007); United States v. Harris, 964 F.3d 986, 988 (11th Cir.
        2020). But where, as here, the defendant did not object to the pro-
        cedural reasonableness of his sentence at the time of sentencing,
        we review only for plain error. United States v. Vandergrift, 754
        F.3d 1303, 1307 (11th Cir. 2014). To prevail under plain error re-
        view, the defendant must show: (1) there was an error (amounting
        to an abuse of discretion); (2) that was plain; (3) that affected his
        substantial rights; and (4) that seriously affected the fairness of the
        judicial proceedings. United States v. Ramirez-Flores, 743 F.3d 816,
        822 (11th Cir. 2014).
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        22-10924               Opinion of the Court                         3

                A sentence is procedurally unreasonable if the district court
        fails to adequately explain the sentence, including any variance
        from the guidelines range. See United States v. Shaw, 560 F.3d
        1230, 1237 (11th Cir. 2009). The court is required “at the time of
        sentencing . . . to state in open court the reasons for its imposition
        of the particular sentence.” 18 U.S.C. § 3553(c). If the sentence is
        within the guidelines range and exceeds 24 months, the court must
        state “the reason for imposing a sentence at a particular point
        within the range.” Id. § 3553(c)(1). And if the sentence is outside
        the guidelines range, the court must not only state “the specific rea-
        son[s]” for the variance in open court but must also state those rea-
        sons “with specificity in a statement of reasons form.” Id.
        § 3553(c)(2). The court’s reason must be “sufficiently compelling
        to support the degree of the variance,” Harris, 964 F.3d at 988, and
        it must be specific enough to allow for meaningful appellate re-
        view, United States v. Parks, 823 F.3d 990, 997 (11th Cir. 2016). We
        review de novo whether the district court complied with
        § 3553(c)(2), even if the defendant did not make a timely objection
        to the district court’s failure to comply with it. Id. at 996–97; see
        also United States v. Brown, 879 F.3d 1231, 1234 (11th Cir. 2018).
               At sentencing the district court properly determined that
        Oudomsine’s total offense level was 11 and his criminal history cat-
        egory was I, resulting in a guidelines range of 8 to 14 months. The
        court varied upward and sentenced Oudomsine to 36 months — a
        sentence well below the 240-month statutory maximum penalty.
        Oudomsine contends that his sentence is procedurally
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        4                         Opinion of the Court                     22-10924

        unreasonable because the district court didn’t adequately explain
        the upward variance. We disagree.
               The court explicitly stated at sentencing that in varying up-
        ward it had considered the parties’ arguments, the sentencing
        guidelines, the advisory guidelines range, the presentence investi-
        gation report (PSR),1 and the 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) sentencing fac-
        tors. The court also explained why the chosen sentence was ap-
        propriate in light of the § 3553(a) factors and undisputed facts in the
        record, and it repeated that explanation on the statement of reasons
        form.
               The court’s reasoning was that Oudomsine’s fraud was not
        the kind of ordinary fraud contemplated by the guidelines because
        he used “his education, ability, and background to steal money
        from a national benevolence,” taking $85,000 from a federal relief
        program designed to save the economy during the pandemic. In
        committing that crime, the court explained, Oudomsine had
        shown “blatant disregard for the people who needed these funds
        and for the people who paid for this program.” Deeming deter-
        rence to be the most important sentencing factor, the court deter-
        mined that the upward variance sentence was “sufficient, but not
        greater than necessary, to meet the crime [Oudomsine] committed

        1 The court adopted the factual findings in the PSR without objection. Factual
        findings for purposes of sentencing may be based on undisputed statements in
        the PSR. United States v. Polar, 369 F.3d 1248, 1255 (11th Cir. 2004).
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        22-10924               Opinion of the Court                         5

        and to demonstrate to the world the likely result of the commission
        of the same or similar criminal act.”
                The district court was not required to state on the record
        that it explicitly considered each § 3553(a) factor or to discuss each
        factor. United States v. Kuhlman, 711 F.3d 1321, 1326 (11th Cir.
        2013). It is enough that the record reflects the court’s consideration
        of the sentencing factors and the parties’ arguments. United States
        v. Cabezas-Montano, 949 F.3d 567, 609 (11th Cir. 2020). The court
        did give a sufficiently specific and compelling basis for the upward
        variance and complied with the requirements of § 3553(c)(2). See
        Parks, 823 F.3d at 997; Harris, 964 F.3d at 988.
               Oudomsine also challenges the court’s decision to treat his
        fraud as atypical compared to general, run-of-the-mill fraud cases.
        We see no error. The court didn’t rely on any clearly erroneous
        facts in making that decision and adequately explained why it
        didn’t consider this to be a mine-run case, particularly because
        Oudomsine used his education and ability to exploit a government
        relief program during a time of economic upheaval. See Kim-
        brough v. United States, 552 U.S. 85, 109 (2007) (explaining that a
        court’s decision to vary from the guidelines may merit the “great-
        est respect” when the sentencing judge finds the case to be “outside
        the heartland” of cases contemplated by the Sentencing Commis-
        sion) (quotation marks omitted). The district court also empha-
        sized Oudomsine’s history and characteristics, finding that he acted
        “with the facility and with the ability and with a level of venality
        that his age, his education, his upbringing, and his life experience
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        6                           Opinion of the Court                        22-10924

        [made] . . . all the more culpable.” There was no error, much less
        plain error.
                                                II.
               Oudomsine next contends that his sentence is substantively
        unreasonable. We review the substantive reasonableness of a sen-
        tence for abuse of discretion, considering the totality of the circum-
        stances. Gall, 552 U.S. at 51. Oudomsine bears the burden of es-
        tablishing that his sentence is unreasonable based on the record and
        the § 3553(a) factors. United States v. Rosales-Bruno, 789 F.3d
        1249, 1256 (11th Cir. 2015).
               The district court must impose a sentence that is “sufficient,
        but not greater than necessary,” to comply with the purposes of 18
        U.S.C. § 3553(a)(2). 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a). 2 The court abuses its dis-
        cretion when it: “(1) fails to afford consideration to relevant factors
        that were due significant weight, (2) gives significant weight to an
        improper or irrelevant factor, or (3) commits a clear error of judg-
        ment in considering the proper factors.” United States v. Irey, 612
        F.3d 1160, 1189 (11th Cir. 2010) (en banc) (quotation marks

        2 Section 3553(a) directs the court to consider: (1) the nature and circum-
        stances of the offense and the history and characteristics of the defendant; (2)
        the need for the sentence to reflect the seriousness of the offense, promote
        respect for the law, provide just punishment, deter criminal conduct, protect
        the public from future crimes of the defendant, and provide the defendant
        with needed educational or vocational training or medical care; (3) the kinds
        of sentences available; (4) the applicable guidelines range; (5) the pertinent pol-
        icy statements of the Sentencing Commission; (6) the need to avoid unwar-
        ranted sentence disparities; and (7) the need to provide restitution to victims.
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        22-10924                 Opinion of the Court                             7

        omitted). That rarely happens given the nature of the enterprise
        and the familiarity of district court judges with it. See Rosales-
        Bruno, 789 F.3d at 1256. We will vacate a defendant’s sentence as
        substantively unreasonable only if we are “left with the definite and
        firm conviction that the district court committed a clear error of
        judgment in weighing the § 3553(a) factors by arriving at a sentence
        that lies outside the range of reasonable sentences dictated by the
        facts of the case.” Irey, 612 F.3d at 1190 (quotation marks omitted).
               A district court “has considerable discretion in deciding
        whether the § 3553(a) factors justify a variance and the extent of
        one that is appropriate.” Shaw, 560 F.3d at 1238 (quotation marks
        omitted). We may take the degree of variance into account, but
        we do not presume that a sentence outside the guidelines range is
        unreasonable and we must give due deference to the district court’s
        decision that the § 3553(a) factors support its chosen sentence.
        Irey, 612 F.3d at 1186–87.
                Oudomsine contends that his sentence is substantively un-
        reasonable because the court gave undue weight to the need for
        deterrence factor without providing a compelling deterrence ra-
        tionale. He claims the real reason the court varied upward was that
        it did not like him, and the reason it didn’t was that of the $85,000
        he obtained by fraud he spent $57,789 to buy a single Pokémon
        card. 3

        3 Pokémon cards are collectible cards used in a trading card game. See Poké-
        mon Trading Card Game, Pokemon.com, https://www.pokemon.com/us/
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        8                         Opinion of the Court                 22-10924

               We are not persuaded. The record shows that the district
        court considered the importance of deterrence along with other
        § 3553(a) factors in varying upward. Those factors included the ap-
        plicable guidelines range, Oudomsine’s history and characteristics,
        the seriousness of his crime, the nature and circumstances of it, and
        the need to promote respect for the law and to provide just punish-
        ment. Oudomsine quarrels with how the district court weighed
        the § 3553(a) factors, including deterrence, but the weight given to
        each factor is left to the sentencing court’s sound discretion.
        Kuhlman, 711 F.3d at 1327. We will not substitute our own judg-
        ment for the district court’s by reweighing them. Id.
                The district court appeared to give more weight to the need
        for deterrence than to other sentencing factors, and it did not abuse
        its discretion in doing so. See Rosales-Bruno, 789 F.3d at 1254. We
        have emphasized that “general deterrence is a critical factor that
        must be considered and should play a role in sentencing defend-
        ants.” United States v. Howard, 28 F.4th 180, 208 (11th Cir. 2022).
        Indeed, it is “one of the key purposes of sentencing.” United States
        v. McQueen, 727 F.3d 1144, 1158 (11th Cir. 2013) (quotation marks
        omitted).
               And we have expressed the view that “[g]eneral deter-
        rence is more apt, not less apt, in white collar crime cases.” How-
        ard, 28 F.4th at 209; see also United States v. Martin, 455 F.3d 1227,
        1240 (11th Cir. 2006) (“[T]he Congress that adopted

        pokemon-tcg (last visited Dec. 22, 2022).
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        22-10924                Opinion of the Court                         9

        the § 3553 sentencing factors emphasized the critical deter-
        rent value of imprisoning serious white collar criminals, even
        where those criminals might themselves be unlikely to commit an-
        other offense[.]”). “[E]conomic and fraud-based crimes are more
        rational, cool and calculated than sudden crimes of passion or op-
        portunity, which makes them prime candidates for general deter-
        rence.” Howard, 28 F.4th at 209 (quotation marks omitted). Be-
        cause “[w]hite collar criminals often calculate the financial gain and
        risk of loss of their crimes . . . an overly lenient sentence sends the
        message that would-be white-collar criminals stand to lose little
        more than a portion of their ill-gotten gains and practically none of
        their liberty.” Id. (quotation marks omitted).
               Oudomsine argues that notwithstanding how important it
        might be in other cases, deterrence is not particularly relevant here
        because the pandemic relief efforts have pretty much ended and
        there is no longer an opportunity (or as much opportunity) to com-
        mit the specific type of fraud he committed, and hence not much
        need to deter the commission of it. We disagree. The deterrent
        effect of the sentence in a fraud or theft case involving a specific
        government program extends beyond commission of the same
        type of crime against the same program. Punishing white collar
        criminals serves to deter others from committing white collar
        crimes, not merely to deter the defendant or others from commit-
        ting a crime that is materially identical to the one that resulted in
        the defendant’s sentence. See generally Martin, 455 F.3d at 1240
        (highlighting the importance of a prison sentence in deterring
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        10                      Opinion of the Court                 22-10924

        others from committing white collar crimes, even if the defendant
        being sentenced isn’t likely to commit the same type of crime
        again).
                While the federal program Oudomsine bilked no longer ex-
        ists, deterring fraud and other crimes against future multi-billion-
        dollar government programs remains an important sentencing
        goal. As we had occasion to comment recently, “Like bears to
        honey, white collar criminals are drawn to billion-dollar govern-
        ment programs.” Howard, 28 F.4th at 186 (citing examples of con-
        victions for fraud, kickbacks, and other crimes involving federal
        health care programs). The crimes are serious and the monetary
        losses are large, as some individual cases show. See, e.g., United
        States v. Rodriguez, 627 F.3d 1372, 1375 (11th Cir. 2010) (“Over a
        nine-month period, [the defendant and her co-defendant] submit-
        ted to Medicare over $19,000,000 in fraudulent claims and received
        over $3,200,000 in payments. . . . It was all fraud, perfectly pure and
        somewhat simple.”). The need for deterrence of government fraud
        crimes is great.
                Now for a couple of miscellaneous contentions. One is
        Oudomsine’s argument that the deterrence rationale isn’t compel-
        ling because deterrence was accounted for in the PSR. It almost
        invariably is accounted for in that way, yet we have held that “[t]he
        district court may vary upward based on conduct that was already
        considered in calculating the guideline range.” United States v.
        Taylor, 997 F.3d 1348, 1355 (11th Cir. 2021).
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        22-10924                Opinion of the Court                        11

                As for Oudomsine’s argument that the court varied upward
        in sentencing because it did not like him, there is nothing in the
        record to support the proposition that the judge did not “like
        him” –– whatever that means in this context. But it would not be
        surprising, or disqualifying, if a judge did not “like” a person who
        defrauded a federal program of funds intended to promote the pub-
        lic good and help small businesses, particularly when the stolen
        funds were used for the purpose of purchasing a $57,789 Pokémon
        card. Besides, Oudomsine’s motive and the use to which he put his
        ill-gotten gains are relevant to the § 3553(a)(1) factor of “the nature
        and circumstances of the offense and the history and characteristics
        of the defendant.” Their relevance does not depend on whether
        the judge likes the defendant.
              Finally, Oudomsine’s sentence of 36 months is far below the
        240-month statutory maximum, which is a strong indication of rea-
        sonableness. See Taylor, 997 F.3d at 1355.
               The court appropriately considered the relevant § 3553(a)
        factors, provided a sufficiently compelling justification for varying
        from the guidelines range, and imposed a sentence that is both pro-
        cedurally and substantively reasonable.
               AFFIRMED.