United States v. Moyhernandez, No. 20-625 (2d Cir. 2021)
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The Second Circuit affirmed the district court's denial of defendant's motion to reduce his sentence under section 404 of the First Step Act. Defendant was sentenced to 360 months in prison based on his conviction on charges including conspiracy to distribute, and to possess with intent to distribute, more than 50 grams of cocaine base.
The court concluded that district courts are not required to consider the 18 U.S.C. 3553(a) factors when reducing a sentence under section 404 of the First Step Act. The court found unpersuasive the reasoning of sister circuits that have adopted a differing view. The court explained that relief under the First Step Act is discretionary and the district court did not abuse its discretion in declining to reduce defendant's terms of imprisonment and supervised release.
The court rejected defendant's assertion that the emphasis on his career-offender status, combined with the boilerplate language on Form AO 247 (referencing factors irrelevant to First Step Act motions), reflects that the district court misapprehended its authority to grant a sentence reduction under the First Step Act. Rather, the court concluded that the district court did not misconstrue eligibility as depending on career-offender status; the form is titled "Order Regarding Motion for Sentence Reduction Pursuant To First Step Act And 18 U.S.C. 3582(c)(2);" and, although the form contains boilerplate that is irrelevant to defendant, the written decision makes clear that the district court used the proper framework.
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