United States v. Brown, No. 18-2063 (2d Cir. 2021)
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The Second Circuit affirmed defendant's conviction for one count of possessing a firearm after being convicted of a felony but remanded for resentencing. For the reasons stated in a summary order filed simultaneously with this opinion, the court held that (1) the challenged rulings of the district court at trial were not an abuse of discretion, and (2) although it was clearly erroneous not to require the government to prove that defendant knew of his status as a felon, that error does not warrant reversal.
In this opinion, the court held that, contrary to the conclusion of the district court, NYPL 120.05(1) is a "crime of violence" under the force clause of USSG 4B1.2(a)(1) in light of the court's recent decision in United States v. Scott, 990 F.3d 94, 99 (2d Cir. 2021) (en banc). In Scott, the court made clear that a predicate offense is to be categorically recognized as a "crime of violence" under section 4B1.2(a)(1) where conviction requires that the defendant "intentionally caus[e] at least serious physical injury—crimes necessarily involving a use of force—. . . whether committed by acts of omission or by acts of commission."
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