United States v. Thomas, No. 10-3023 (10th Cir. 2011)
Annotate this CaseThe sole issue on appeal in this case was whether the Kansas offense of eluding a police officer is a “crime of violence” under the United States Sentencing Guidelines (USSG). In 2009, Defendant Kennon Thomas was indicted in federal district court for possessing a firearm after having been convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year. Defendant’s pre-sentence investigation report (PSR) determined that his base offense level was 24 because he had committed the federal offense after sustaining two felony convictions involving “crimes of violence.” Defendant objected to the characterization of his two prior felonies as crimes of violence. At the sentencing hearing, the district court agreed with Defendant and reduced his offense level in half. Subsequently, the court imposed a 33-month sentence. Upon review of the applicable legal authority, the Tenth Circuit reversed the district court’s sentence. The Court found that the lower court’s ruling was contrary to the Supreme Court’s recent decision in "Sykes v. United States." The Court remanded Defendant’s case back to the district court for further proceedings.
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