United States v. Gregory J. Hall , 486 F. App'x 101 ( 2012 )

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[DO NOT PUBLISH]
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
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No. 12-11558
Non-Argument Calendar
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D. C. Docket No. 1:05-cr-00017-MP-GRJ-1
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
versus
GREGORY J. HALL,
Defendant-Appellant.
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Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Northern District of Florida
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(August 8, 2012)
Before TJOFLAT, JORDAN and KRAVITCH, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:
Gregory Hall, appearing pro se, appeals the district court’s denial of his
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motion, filed pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2), for a sentence reduction based on
Amendment 750 to the United States Sentencing Guidelines. After a review of the
record and the parties’ briefs, we affirm.
In March of 2007, a jury convicted Mr. Hall of conspiring to distribute and
possess more than 5 kilograms of cocaine and more than 50 grams of crack
cocaine with the intent to distribute in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1),
841(b)(1)(A)(iii), and 846 (count one). Mr. Hall was also convicted of distributing
more than 5 grams of crack cocaine in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and
841(b)(1)(B)(iii) (count two) and acquitted of a third drug charge (count three).
Mr. Hall qualified as a career offender under U.S.S.G. § 4B1.1, which
subjected him to an enhanced offense level of 37, one level higher than his
original base offense level of 36, and a criminal history category of VI. Based on
offense level 37 and criminal history category VI, Mr. Hall’s advisory guideline
range was 360 months’ imprisonment to life imprisonment. Mr. Hall, however,
had two prior felony drug convictions, making him subject to two statutory
mandatory minimum sentences: life imprisonment for his conviction on count one;
and 120 months imprisonment for his conviction on count two. See §§
841(b)(1)(A)(iii) and (b)(1)(B)(iii). On June 21, 2007, the district court sentenced
Mr. Hall to a term of life imprisonment on count one and a concurrent sentence of
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360 months’ imprisonment on count two.
In March of 2012, the district court considered, sua sponte, whether Mr.
Hall was entitled to a sentence reduction under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2) in light of
Amendment 750 to the United States Sentencing Guidelines. Amendment 750,
which was made retroactive by the Sentencing Commission, provided a reduction
in base offense levels for crack cocaine offenses in U.S.S.G. § 2D1.1(c). The
district court denied a § 3582(c)(2) reduction on the ground that Amendment 750
did not lower Mr. Hall’s applicable guideline range because of the operation of the
career offender § 4B1.1 enhancement. See R1:505.
Mr. Hall appeals the denial of a sentence reduction under § 3582(c)(2). He
argues that he was not sentenced as a career offender, and therefore the district
court had jurisdiction to reduce his sentence. Mr. Hall also contends that his
sentence should be reduced because of the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010. We are
not persuaded by Mr. Hall’s arguments.
A district court’s denial of a § 3582(c)(2) motion to reduce a sentence based
on a subsequent amendment to the Sentencing Guidelines is generally reviewed
for abuse of discretion. See United States v. Brown, 332 F.3d 1341, 1343 (11th
Cir. 2003). Nevertheless, “[i]n a § 3582(c)(2) proceeding, ‘we review de novo the
district court’s legal conclusions regarding the scope of its authority under the
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Sentencing Guidelines.’” United States v. Moore, 541 F.3d 1323, 1326 (11th Cir.
2008) (quoting United States v. White, 305 F.3d 1295, 1299 (11th Cir. 2005)). We
can affirm the district court on any legal ground supported by the record even if
the reason differs from the one relied upon by the district court. See United States
v. Al-Arian, 514 F.3d 1184, 1189 (11th Cir. 2008).
Where a defendant is sentenced based on a range that is subsequently
lowered by the Sentencing Commission through a retroactive amendment, a
district court may modify the defendant’s sentence. See § 3582(c)(2). A defendant
is not entitled to a sentence reduction, however, when “an amendment ... is
applicable to the defendant but the amendment does not have the effect of
lowering the defendant’s applicable guideline range because of the operation of
another guideline or statutory provision (e.g., a statutory mandatory minimum term
of imprisonment).” U.S.S.G. § 1B1.10(b)(1), cmt. n. 1(a). Thus, a defendant
sentenced as a career offender under § 4B1.1 is not entitled to a § 3582(c)(2)
sentence reduction based on a retroactive amendment to the base offense levels for
crack cocaine offenses provided in § 2D1.1(c). See Moore, 541 F.3d at 1327.
Likewise, a district court may not grant a sentence reduction pursuant to §
3582(c)(2) to a defendant who was sentenced based upon a statutory mandatory
minimum sentence. See United States v. Mills, 613 F.3d 1070, 1078 (11th Cir.
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2010); United States v. Williams, 549 F.3d 1337, 1341–42 (11th Cir. 2008).
Here, as indicated in the presentence investigation report, Mr. Hall qualified
as a career offender, and therefore, his advisory guideline range was determined
by the enhanced offense level and criminal history category in § 4B1.1. As a
result, Mr. Hall is not entitled to a § 3582(c)(2) sentence reduction based on
Amendment 750 because that amendment only modifies the guideline ranges for
crack cocaine offenses in § 2D1.1. See Moore, 541 F.3d at 1327 (holding that
defendants sentenced as a career offenders under § 4B1.1 are not entitled to
sentence reductions based on amendment to the base offense levels for crack
cocaine offenses in § 2D1.1). In addition, Mr. Hall’s mandatory life sentence on
count one was based on the application of § 841(b)(1)(A)(iii), which remains
unaffected by Amendment 750. See Mills, 613 F.3d at 1077–78 (holding that
defendants sentenced pursuant to a mandatory minimum pursuant to §
841(b)(1)(A)(iii) are not entitled to a sentence reduction based on an amendment
to the crack cocaine guideline ranges in § 2D1.1).
The Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 does not entitle Mr. Hall to a sentence
reduction because he was sentenced before the effective date of the Act (i.e.,
August 3, 2010). See United States v. Powell, 652 F.3d 702, 710 (7th Cir. 2011)
(“[T]he Fair Sentencing Act does not apply retroactively to sentences imposed
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before that Act was signed into law.”) (citing United States v. Gomes, 621 F.3d
1343, 1346 (11th Cir. 2010)). See also Dorsey v. United States, 132 S. Ct. 2321,
2335, — U.S. —, —, (2012) (holding that Fair Sentencing Act applies to
defendants sentenced after the effective date of the Act: “We have explained how
in federal sentencing the ordinary practice is to apply new penalties to defendants
not yet sentenced, while withholding that change from defendants already
sentenced.”).
Accordingly, the district court’s denial of Mr. Hall’s § 3582(c)(2) motion
for a sentence reduction is affirmed.
AFFIRMED.
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