Court Opinion

ID: 9953388
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2024-03-22 00:01:20.430477+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T14:46:05.003007
License: Public Domain

Case: 23-20126            Document: 61-1         Page: 1      Date Filed: 03/21/2024

           United States Court of Appeals
                for the Fifth Circuit                                          United States Court of Appeals
                                                                                        Fifth Circuit
                                   ____________
                                                                                      FILED
                                                                                   March 21, 2024
                                    No. 23-20126
                                   ____________                                    Lyle W. Cayce
                                                                                        Clerk
United States of America,

                                                                    Plaintiff—Appellee,

                                          versus

Timothy Morant,

                                            Defendant—Appellant.
                   ______________________________

                   Appeal from the United States District Court
                       for the Southern District of Texas
                            USDC No. 4:20-CR-531-1
                   ______________________________

Before Elrod, Willett, and Duncan, Circuit Judges.
Per Curiam:*
       Timothy Morant and his codefendants went on a months-long spree
of armed home invasions and kidnappings around Houston, Texas, during
which they threatened, zip-tied, pepper-sprayed, and robbed their victims.
After his arrest, Morant pled guilty of three counts of aiding and abetting
kidnapping in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1201(a) and 2. The Government
charged the kidnappings as crimes of violence, and the district court applied

       _____________________
       *
           This opinion is not designated for publication. See 5th Cir. R. 47.5.
Case: 23-20126        Document: 61-1         Page: 2   Date Filed: 03/21/2024

                                  No. 23-20126

the career offender sentencing enhancement because Morant had two prior
crimes of violence on his record. See U.S.S.G. §§ 4B1.1(a), 4B1.2(a). This
enhancement increased Morant’s recommended minimum sentence from
210–262 months to 262–327 months. U.S.S.G. § 4B1.1(a). The court
sentenced Morant to the maximum 327 months, noting, “Morant [was] one
of the most dangerous people [he had] ever encountered.” Morant did not
object to his sentence and concedes we should review his sentence for plain
error only.
       On appeal, Morant argues the district court plainly erred because,
under the categorical approach, federal kidnapping is not a crime of violence
since its elements sweep more broadly than do the elements of generic
kidnapping. See Taylor v. United States, 495 U.S. 575, 590–96 (1990)
(establishing the categorical approach); Descamps v. United States, 570 U.S.
254, 261 (2013) (explaining that “if the statute sweeps more broadly than the
generic crime, a conviction under that law cannot count” as an enhancing
predicate). Applying the sentencing enhancement was therefore plain error
affecting Morant’s substantial rights.
       To demonstrate plain error, Morant must show: (1) error; (2) that is
clear or obvious; (3) that affects his substantial rights; and (4) that “seriously
affect[s] the fairness, integrity or public reputation of judicial proceedings.”
Puckett v. United States, 556 U.S. 129, 135 (2009) (alteration in original)
(citation omitted). At a minimum, Morant fails on prong two, and so our
analysis can stop there.
       “[U]nder plain-error review, we are not required to definitively
conclude an error occurred. Instead, we can assume that one occurred and
address whether the alleged error was clear or obvious in the second prong of
the plain-error inquiry.” United States v. Forbito, No. 22-11026, 2023 WL
8274528, at *2 (5th Cir. Nov. 30, 2023); United States v. Garcia-Gonzalez,

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                                 No. 23-20126

714 F.3d 306, 318 (5th Cir. 2013) (“assuming arguendo” that error occurred
but concluding that the error was not plain); United States v. Alvarado-
Martinez, 713 F. App’x 259, 265–66 (5th Cir. 2017) (assuming error but
finding it was not clear or obvious due to a lack of precedent).
       Any error here, assuming one occurred, was neither clear nor obvious.
Morant points to no precedent holding that federal kidnapping under
18 U.S.C. § 1201(a) is not a crime of violence. Cf. United States v. Gonzalez-
Ramirez, 477 F.3d 310, 317–18 (5th Cir. 2007) (applying the generic definition
of kidnapping to a state but not the federal kidnapping statute). A “lack of
binding authority is often dispositive in the plain-error context . . .” United
States v. Gonzalez, 792 F.3d 534, 538 (5th Cir. 2015). And the few sister
circuits to consider this question have found no clear or obvious error. See
United States v. Simmons, 847 F. App’x 589, 593 (11th Cir. 2021) (rejecting
plain error argument because no precedent had held federal kidnapping was
not a crime of violence); United States v. Rodriguez, 747 F. App’x 93, 96–97
(3d Cir. 2018) (same). And even if Morant had pointed to precedent, “[t]here
is no plain error if the legal landscape at the time showed the issue was
disputed.” United States v. Rodriguez-Parra, 581 F.3d 227, 230 (5th Cir.
2009). At the very least, whether federal kidnapping is a crime of violence is
disputed.
       Accordingly, the district court did not commit plain error.
                                                               AFFIRMED.

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