United States v. Scott, No. 10-2432 (8th Cir. 2011)
Annotate this CaseAppellant pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of cocaine base and sentenced to 120 years imprisonment. Appellant appealed his sentence and argued that he was eligible for safety valve relief under 18 U.S.C. 3553(f) and that the district court erred in concluding that it was required to assess criminal history points on the basis of his probationary status at the time of the instant offense. Appellant argued, in the alternative, that the court should vacate the sentence and remand for resentencing in accordance with the recently enacted Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 ("Act"), Pub. L. No. 111-220. The court held that, because the district court's application of U.S.S.G. 4A1.1(d) yielded a criminal history score greater than 1, appellant was ineligible for safety valve relief under section 3553(f)(1). Therefore, the district court correctly concluded that it had no choice but to impose the mandatory minimum sentence of 120 months imprisonment. The court also held that appellant's alternative argument to vacate the sentence in accordance with the Act was foreclosed by the court's decision in United States v. Smith which held that the Act was not retroactive.
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.