US v. Craig Ford, No. 09-4082 (4th Cir. 2009)
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UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 09-4082 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. CRAIG FORD, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia, at Wheeling. Frederick P. Stamp, Jr., Senior District Judge. (5:08-cr-00032-FPS-JES-1) Submitted: July 23, 2009 Before KING and Circuit Judge. DUNCAN Decided: Circuit Judges, and August 11, 2009 HAMILTON, Senior Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion. Brendan S. Leary, Assistant Federal Public Defender, Wheeling, West Virginia, for Appellant. Sharon L. Potter, United States Attorney, David J. Perri, Randolph J. Bernard, Assistant United States Attorneys, Wheeling, West Virginia, for Appellee. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. PER CURIAM: Craig Ford appeals his sentence following his guilty plea to being a convicted felon in possession of ammunition, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1) (2006). On appeal, Ford argues that the district court procedurally erred in calculating his guideline sentencing range because Ford was entitled to the sporting and collection exception pursuant to U.S. Sentencing Guidelines Manual (USSG) § 2K2.1(b)(2) (2008). This court reviews a sentence for reasonableness under Gall v. United States, 552 an abuse-of-discretion standard. U.S. 38, __, 128 S. Ct. 586, 597 (2007). This review requires appellate consideration of both the procedural and substantive reasonableness of a sentence. sentence is procedurally Id. In determining whether a reasonable, this court must assess whether the district court properly calculated the defendant s advisory sentencing guideline court range. properly Id. applied In the assessing Guidelines, whether this a court reviews the court s factual findings for clear error and its legal conclusions de novo. United States v. Allen, 446 F.3d 522, 527 (4th Cir. 2006). The defendant bears the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence that he is entitled to a specified reduction in his guideline sentencing level. See States v. Abdi, 342 F.3d 313, 317 (4th Cir. 2003). 2 United Section 2K2.1(b)(2) of the Guidelines provides for a sentencing level reduction when disqualified the ammunition person solely in question for lawful is possessed sporting by purposes a or collection and the defendant did not otherwise unlawfully use that ammunition. Given that Ford lacked a hunting license and told investigating officers that he intended to hunt deer, which would not failed legal court district be did to show to not that he hunt for clearly another err possessed by the seven months, concluding ammunition that for the Ford lawful sporting purposes. Therefore, the district court did not err in denying 2K2.1(b)(2) a USSG § reduction in Ford s guideline sentencing level. Accordingly, we affirm the district court s judgment. We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before the court and argument would not aid the decisional process. AFFIRMED 3
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