United States v. Merisier , 464 F. App'x 27 ( 2012 )


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  •          10-2017-cr
    United States v. Merisier
    UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
    FOR THE SECOND CIRCUIT
    SUMMARY ORDER
    RULINGS BY SUMMARY ORDER DO NOT HAVE PRECEDENTIAL EFFECT. CITATION TO A SUMMARY ORDER FILED
    ON OR AFTER JANUARY 1, 2007, IS PERMITTED AND IS GOVERNED BY FEDERAL RULE OF APPELLATE
    PROCEDURE 32.1 AND THIS COURT’S LOCAL RULE 32.1.1. WHEN CITING A SUMMARY ORDER IN A
    DOCUMENT FILED WITH THIS COURT, A PARTY MUST CITE EITHER THE FEDERAL APPENDIX OR AN
    ELECTRONIC DATABASE (WITH THE NOTATION “SUMMARY ORDER”). A PARTY CITING A SUMMARY ORDER MUST
    SERVE A COPY OF IT ON ANY PARTY NOT REPRESENTED BY COUNSEL.
    1            At a stated term of the United States Court of Appeals
    2       for the Second Circuit, held at the Daniel Patrick Moynihan
    3       United States Courthouse, 500 Pearl Street, in the City of
    4       New York, on the 6th day of March, two thousand twelve.
    5
    6       PRESENT: DENNIS JACOBS,
    7                              Chief Judge,
    8                GUIDO CALABRESI,
    9                ROSEMARY S. POOLER,
    10                              Circuit Judges.
    11
    12       - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -X
    13       UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
    14                Appellee,
    15
    16                    -v.-                                               10-2017-cr
    17
    18       ROSHAWN MERISIER, AKA ROCKY, AKA ROCK,
    19       AKA ROSCO,
    20                Defendant-Apellant,
    21
    22       and,
    23
    24       DAMIAN GREEN, EDDIE IGLESIAS, HECTOR
    25       MORALES,
    26                Defendants.
    27       - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -X
    28
    1
    1   FOR APPELLANT:             Steven Yurowitz, Newman &
    2                              Greenberg, New York, NY.
    3
    4   FOR APPELLEES:             Amy Busa & Matthew S. Amatruda,
    5                              for Loretta E. Lynch, United
    6                              States Attorney for the Eastern
    7                              District of New York, Brooklyn,
    8                              NY.
    9
    10        Appeal from a judgment of the United States District
    11   Court for the Eastern District of New York (Garaufis, J.).
    12
    13        UPON DUE CONSIDERATION, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, ADJUDGED
    14   AND DECREED that the judgment of the district court be
    15   AFFIRMED.
    16
    17        Defendant Roshawn Merisier appeals from a judgment of
    18   conviction entered by the United States District Court for
    19   the Eastern District of New York (Garaufis, J.) for
    20   conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to
    21   distribute cocaine base, in violation of 
    21 U.S.C. §§ 846
    22   and 841(b)(1)(A)(iii), and illegally dealing firearms, in
    23   violation of 
    18 U.S.C. §§ 922
    (a)(1)(A) and 924(a)(1)(D). We
    24   assume the parties’ familiarity with the facts, procedural
    25   history, and issues presented on appeal.
    26
    27        Merisier argues that he should be resentenced with the
    28   benefit of the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010, Pub. L. No.
    29   111-220, 
    124 Stat. 2372
     (2010) (“FSA”), which reduced the
    30   mandatory minimum he faced for one of the crimes to which he
    31   pled guilty. At least one panel of this Court has already
    32   held that the FSA does not apply retroactively to a
    33   defendant in Merisier’s position--one sentenced before the
    34   FSA was enacted. See United States v. Acoff, 
    634 F.3d 200
    ,
    35   202-03 (2d Cir. 2011) (per curiam). That opinion accords
    36   with every circuit’s decision on the issue. See United
    37   States v. Goncalves, 
    642 F.3d 245
    , 253-54 (1st Cir. 2011);
    38   United States v. Reevey, 
    631 F.3d 110
    , 114-15 (3d Cir.
    39   2010); United States v. Bullard, 
    645 F.3d 237
    , 248–49 (4th
    40   Cir. 2011), United States v. Doggins, 
    633 F.3d 379
    , 384 (5th
    41   Cir. 2011); United States v. Carradine, 
    621 F.3d 575
    , 580
    42   (6th Cir. 2010); United States v. Bell, 
    624 F.3d 803
    , 814-15
    43   (7th Cir. 2010); United States v. Brewer, 
    624 F.3d 900
    , 909
    44   n.7 (8th Cir. 2010); United States v. Baptist, 
    646 F.3d 45
       1225, 1229 (9th Cir. 2011) (per curiam); United States v.
    46   Lewis, 
    625 F.3d 1224
    , 1228 (10th Cir. 2010); United States
    47   v. Gomes, 
    621 F.3d 1343
    , 1346 (11th Cir. 2010) (per curiam).
    2
    1        While mandated by our precedents, nothing inhibits the
    2   executive from extending clemency that would bring this
    3   sentence in line with the FSA, and on the whole, the panel
    4   is of the view that clemency would serve the interests of
    5   justice in this case because even though Merisier was
    6   sentenced prior to the enactment of the FSA, his appeal was
    7   still pending--and thus his conviction was not yet final--at
    8   the time the FSA became effective.
    9
    10
    11        Finding no merit in defendant’s remaining arguments, we
    12   hereby AFFIRM the judgment of the district court.
    13
    14
    15                              FOR THE COURT:
    16                              Catherine O’Hagan Wolfe, Clerk
    17
    18
    3