United States v. Erlinger, No. 22-1926 (7th Cir. 2023)
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Erlinger pled guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm, 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(1), and was given an enhanced 15-year sentence under the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA), 18 U.S.C. 924(e), based on his 1991 Illinois conviction for residential burglary, 1991 Indiana conviction for burglary, and two 2003 Indiana convictions for dealing in methamphetamine. The court vacated Erlinger’s sentence after the Seventh Circuit held that Illinois residential burglary is not a violent felony and Indiana methamphetamine convictions are not serious drug offenses under ACCA. The government argued that Erlinger still qualified for an ACCA enhancement, citing other 1991 Indiana burglary convictions. The government supplied the plea and charging documents; each charged a different burglary at a different business, three on different dates within a week. Erlinger argued that Indiana’s definition of burglary is broader than the federal definition and does not trigger ACCA and these burglaries were not committed on separate occasions as ACCA requires, and a jury, not the judge, must make that factual determination.
The district court imposed an ACCA-enhanced 15-year sentence. The Seventh Circuit affirmed. The Indiana statute does not include language the Supreme Court deems overly broad. Erlinger has not cited any Indiana cases that interpret the statute in this manner. The government was not required to prove to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt that Erlinger committed the Indiana burglaries on separate occasions.
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