United States v. Erwin, No. 13-3407 (3d Cir. 2014)
Annotate this CaseIn 2009 - 2010, Erwin managed an oxycodone distribution ring by obtaining medically unnecessary prescriptions for oxycodone from licensed physicians in exchange for cash. Erwin’s customers, posing as patients, filled the prescriptions at various pharmacies. The conspiracy yielded hundreds of thousands of oxycodone tablets, which were illegally sold on the black market. Erwin executed a written agreement to plead guilty to a single-count information charging him with conspiracy; the government agreed not to bring further charges. The agreement stipulated that, under the advisory Sentencing Guidelines: based on the quantity of oxycodone for which Erwin was responsible (6,912 grams), his base offense level was 38; Erwin was subject to a four-level enhancement for his leadership role and qualified for a three-level downward adjustment for acceptance of responsibility; the total Guidelines offense level was 39. The agreement included a waiver of right to appeal the sentence if it was within or below the advisory Sentencing Guidelines range. Erwin’s 188-month sentence was below that range. The Third Circuit vacated, holding that Erwin’s appeal was within the scope of the waiver, to which he knowingly and voluntarily agreed, and that he failed to raise any meritorious grounds for circumventing the waiver. The appropriate remedy for his breach was specific performance of the agreement’s terms: that is, the government is excused from its obligation to move for a downward departure.
The court issued a subsequent related opinion or order on March 10, 2015.
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