Court Opinion

ID: 9915596
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2024-01-05 21:01:04.895696+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:16:57.744269
License: Public Domain

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                                             UNPUBLISHED

                               UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
                                   FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

                                               No. 23-4163

        UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

                             Plaintiff - Appellee,

                      v.

        KIMJUAN DWAYNE ELLIS, JR.,

                             Defendant - Appellant.

        Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, at
        Raleigh. James C. Dever III, District Judge. (5:19-cr-00011-D-1)

        Submitted: December 14, 2023                                      Decided: January 4, 2024

        Before HARRIS, Circuit Judge, and MOTZ and TRAXLER, Senior Circuit Judges.

        Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

        ON BRIEF: David Q. Burgess, DAVID BURGESS LAW, PC, Charlotte, North Carolina,
        for Appellant. Michael F. Easley, Jr., United States Attorney, David A. Bragdon, Assistant
        United States Attorney, Lucy Partain Brown, Assistant United States Attorney, OFFICE
        OF THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY, Raleigh, North Carolina, for Appellee.

        Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
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        PER CURIAM:

               Kimjuan Dwayne Ellis, Jr., appeals the 120-month sentence imposed on

        resentencing following his guilty plea to possessing ammunition as a convicted felon, in

        violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1). On appeal, Ellis argues his sentence is procedurally

        unreasonable because the district court did not adequately explain its reasons for rejecting

        one of his mitigating arguments. We affirm.

               We review criminal sentences for procedural reasonableness “under a deferential

        abuse-of-discretion standard.” United States v. Lewis, 18 F.4th 743, 748 (4th Cir. 2021)

        (internal quotation marks omitted). For a sentence to be procedurally reasonable, “a district

        court must conduct an individualized assessment of the facts and arguments presented and

        impose an appropriate sentence, and it must explain the sentence chosen.” United States

        v. Nance, 957 F.3d 204, 212 (4th Cir. 2020) (internal quotation marks omitted).

               Importantly, “a district court must address or consider all non-frivolous reasons

        presented for imposing a different sentence and explain why [it] has rejected those

        arguments.” United States v. Ross, 912 F.3d 740, 744 (4th Cir. 2019). A district court

        satisfies this requirement “if it, although somewhat briefly, outlines the defendant’s

        particular history and characteristics not merely in passing or after the fact, but as part of

        its analysis of the statutory factors and in response to defense counsel’s arguments for a

        [lower sentence].” United States v. Lozano, 962 F.3d 773, 782 (4th Cir. 2020) (internal

        quotation marks omitted).      At bottom, the district court’s “explanation need not be

        exhaustive or robotically tick through the [18 U.S.C.] § 3553(a) factors,” but it “must be

        sufficient to satisfy the appellate court that the district court has considered the parties’

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        arguments and has a reasoned basis for exercising its own legal decisionmaking authority.”

        United States v. Friend, 2 F.4th 369, 379 (4th Cir. 2021) (cleaned up); see also United

        States v. Arbaugh, 951 F.3d 167, 174 (4th Cir. 2020) (“The adequacy of the sentencing

        court’s explanation depends on the complexity of each case.” (cleaned up)).

               Here, when discussing its chosen sentence, the district court specifically mentioned

        Ellis’ mitigating arguments—including his argument regarding his brain development at

        the time of the offense—before explaining that it found those arguments were outweighed

        by the seriousness of the offense, Ellis’ criminal history, and the needs to protect the public

        and afford adequate deterrence. The court specifically engaged with defense counsel’s

        arguments regarding Ellis’ childhood and brain development, and it explicitly stated that it

        had considered those arguments when choosing an appropriate sentence. These comments

        sufficiently demonstrate that the district court “considered [Ellis’] arguments and ha[d] a

        reasoned basis for exercising its own legal decisionmaking authority.” Friend, 2 F.4th at

        379 (internal quotation marks omitted).

               We therefore affirm the criminal judgment. We dispense with oral argument

        because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before this

        court and argument would not aid the decisional process.

                                                                                         AFFIRMED

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