United States v. Doran, No. 19-3222 (8th Cir. 2020)
Annotate this CaseThe Eighth Circuit affirmed defendant's sentence imposed after he pleaded guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. The court held that the district court did not err by applying an enhanced offense level pursuant to USSG 2K2.1(a)(2) based on prior state convictions for a crime of violence and a controlled substance offense. In this case, defendant's prior conviction for threatening to commit a crime which will result in death or great bodily injury to another person, in violation of California Penal Code 422(a), qualified as a crime of violence because the statute's elements necessarily include a threatened use of physical force capable of causing physical pain or injury to another person. The court rejected defendant's contention that his prior California conviction for possession of marijuana for sale does not qualify as a controlled substance offense due to California's reclassification of his conviction. The court has repeatedly rejected similar arguments to the federal effects of state classification.
Court Description: [Melloy, Author, with Benton and Kobes, Circuit Judges] Criminal case - Sentencing. Defendant's two prior California state convictions qualified as a crime of violence and a controlled substance offense, and the district court did not err in applying an enhanced offense level pursuant to Guidelines Sec. 2K2.1(a)(2).
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