United States v. Robert Clemendor

[DO NOT PUBLISH]
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT FILED
________________________ U.S. COURT OF APPEALS
ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
No. 06-15537 JUNE 13 2007
Non-Argument Calendar THOMAS K. KAHN
________________________ CLERK
D. C. Docket No. 06-00134-CR-T-27-MSS
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
versus
ROBERT CLEMENDOR,
Defendant-Appellant.
________________________
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Middle District of Florida
_________________________
(June 13, 2007)
Before ANDERSON, BARKETT and MARCUS, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:
Robert Clemendor appeals his 37-month sentence for failing to appear to
begin service of his sentence, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 3146(a)(2). On appeal,
Clemendor argues that the district court erred by applying a three-level increase to
his offense level under U.S.S.G. § 2J1.7 when calculating his advisory sentencing
range, pursuant to the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, because it is unclear whether §
2J1.7 and its related statute, 18 U.S.C. § 3147, apply to the crime of failing to
appear to begin service of a sentence, a violation of § 3146(a)(2). In support of
this argument, Clemendor relies on an amendment to the Guidelines, which
became effective after imposition of Clemendor’s sentence and which Clemendor
says makes the § 2J1.7 three-level enhancement applicable to a defendant
convicted of violating 18 U.S.C. § 3146 only if the defendant obstructed an
investigation or trial. According to Clemendor, application of both § 3146 and §
3147, as well as § 2J1.7, resulted in improper double counting, based on the same
offense conduct, under the Guidelines. He also challenges the reasonableness of
his sentence. After thorough review of the record and careful consideration of the
parties’ briefs, we affirm.
We review the district court’s interpretation and application of the
Sentencing Guidelines de novo. See United States v. Bozza, 132 F.3d 659, 661
(11th Cir. 1998). Our review of a claim of double counting under the Guidelines is
de novo. See United States v. Perez, 366 F.3d 1178, 1183 (11th Cir. 2004). After
United States v. Booker, 543 U.S. 220 (2005), a district court, in determining a
reasonable sentence, must consider the correctly calculated advisory Guidelines
range and the 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) factors. See United States v. Talley, 431 F.3d
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784, 786 (11th Cir. 2005). On appeal, we review the defendant’s ultimate sentence
for reasonableness in light of the § 3553(a) factors. United States v. Williams, 435
F.3d 1350, 1353 (11th Cir. 2006). “[T]he party who challenges the sentence bears
the burden of establishing that the sentence is unreasonable in the light of both
[the] record and the factors in section 3553(a).” Talley, 431 F.3d at 788.
The relevant facts are straightforward. On April 11, 2006, Clemendor was
indicted on one count of failing to surrender for service of his sentence, in violation
of 18 U.S.C. § 3146(a)(2). He pled guilty to the charge and proceeded to
sentencing. According to the Presentence Investigation Report (“PSI”), in October
2005, Clemendor had pled guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, in violation
of 18 U.S.C. § 1349. On February 2, 2006, he was sentenced on that charge to a
48-month term of imprisonment. At the sentencing hearing for the wire fraud
conviction, Clemendor asked the district court to allow him to voluntarily
surrender for service of his sentence because he needed to arrange for the care of
his daughter. The court granted the request and gave Clemendor five days to self-
surrender. Five days later, on February 7th, Clemendor told his pretrial services
officer that he was driving to Atlanta to self-surrender, but he never appeared at the
pretrial services office. Over two months later, on April 11, 2006, a warrant was
issued for his arrest and the instant indictment issued. Clemendor was arrested in
West Palm Beach on May 1, 2006.
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The PSI recommended a base offense level of 11, pursuant to U.S.S.G. §
2J1.6(a)(1), which applies to a defendant who has failed to appear if the offense
constituted a failure to report for service of sentence. The PSI also recommended a
three-level increase in the offense level, pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 2J1.7, because
Clemendor had committed the failure-to-appear offense while on release, and a
two-level reduction for acceptance of responsibility, pursuant to U.S.S.G. §
3E1.1(a). With an adjusted offense level of 12 and a criminal history category VI
(based on 19 criminal history points), Clemendor faced an advisory Guidelines
range of 30 to 37 months’ imprisonment.
Clemendor lodged various objections to the PSI, including to the three-level
increase of his offense level under § 2J1.7. At the sentencing hearing, Clemendor
argued that he had not received proper notice that the government was going to
seek the enhancement. He also asserted that application of the enhancement
resulted in improper double counting because he would be penalized for the same
conduct twice, and that the statute underlying § 2J1.7, 18 U.S.C. § 3147, was
ambiguous such that application of the statute would violate the rule of lenity.
The district court overruled Clemendor’s objection, stating that the PSI and
the release form Clemendor signed in connection with the underlying fraud case
provided adequate notice of the possibility of the enhancement and of the fact that
he would be penalized if he failed to appear to serve his sentence. The court also
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rejected Clemendor’s double counting argument. The court adopted the PSI’s
recommendations and then heard Clemendor’s argument in support of mitigation.
Clemendor argued that a Guidelines sentence would be too high, and urged
the court to impose a one-year sentence in light of the fact that he also would be
serving a 4-year term for his original fraud conviction. He also highlighted that he
had turned himself in willingly once he was contacted by authorities, and part of
the reason for his failure to appear was that he had to find adequate care for his
three-year-old daughter. In further support of a below-range sentence, Clemendor
urged that a 30- to 37-month sentence would provide for an unwarranted
sentencing disparity, and that a one-year sentence would adequately deter him and
others.
Clemendor also presented the testimony of his mother and his own
testimony in support of mitigation. His mother stated that her son had turned his
life around, and that even though she was going to be taking care of his child while
he was in prison, she was 74 years old and afraid of what would happen to the
child if she passed away. Clemendor asked the court for mercy and reiterated that
his failure to appear was due to his desire to put his daughter in a better situation.
The government responded Clemendor had been shown leniency in the past
and had been given “the benefit of the doubt” on several occasions. The
government highlighted that a probation officer had contacted Clemendor five days
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after his release and told him to turn himself in at the U.S. Marshal’s office.
Clemendor had claimed that he was on his way to turn himself in, but he never
showed up. The government argued that Clemendor had exhausted all good faith,
and a sentence within the Guidelines range was reasonable.
In imposing sentence, the district court stated that it was considering the
following factors under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a): (1) the circumstances of the offense;
(2) Clemendor’s background and criminal history; (3) the seriousness of the
offense; (4) the need to deter others; and (4) the need to protect the public. The
court said that Clemendor had violated the court’s trust, and that the public needed
to be protected from him because he could not be trusted. The court stated that
Clemendor deserved a long sentence because he had violated the court’s trust and
put money in front of his freedom and his daughter’s needs. The district court
sentenced Clemendor to a 37-month sentence that would run consecutively to the
term of imprisonment imposed for his original fraud conviction. The court also
indicated to Clemendor’s mother that it had considered her letter and testimony,
and, while it was happy that she was going to be caring for Clemendor’s daughter,
Clemendor had to be punished.
Clemendor renewed his objections and also argued that the sentence was not
reasonable as the court had not adequately considered the factors listed in §
3553(a). The district court responded that it had listed the factors it had considered
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and also stated that it wanted to be “very clear” that it was relying on all of the
sentencing factors set forth in § 3553(a). This appeal followed.
First, Clemendor challenges application of the three-level enhancement to
his offense level, pursuant to § 2J1.7, arguing that amendments to the Guidelines,
which took effect after his sentencing, prohibited application of the enhancement
because he did not obstruct the investigation or trial of the underlying wire fraud
case. He also contends that the related statute, 18 U.S.C. § 3147, is ambiguous
and, accordingly, should not apply to him, pursuant to the rule of lenity. He urges
that application of § 3147 to a § 3146 violation results in improper double counting
at sentencing.
Clemendor was convicted of violating 18 U.S.C. § 3146(a)(2), which
provides that a person who, having been released under Title 18, Chapter 207,
“Release and Detention Pending Judicial Proceedings,” knowingly fails to
surrender for service of his sentence shall be punished by imposition of a fine,
imprisonment for not more than 10 years, or both, when the underlying offense
was punishable by a term of imprisonment of 15 years or more. See 18 U.S.C. §
3146(a)(2). The statutory maximum for Clemendor’s underlying offense,
conspiracy to commit wire fraud, was 20 years’ imprisonment. See 18 U.S.C. §§
1343, 1349. Under the Sentencing Guidelines, the base offense level for a
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defendant who commits the offense of failing to report for service of a sentence is
11. See U.S.S.G. § 2J1.6(a)(1) (Nov. 2005).
Section 3147 of Title 18, in turn, provides in relevant part:
A person convicted of an offense committed while released under this
chapter shall be sentenced, in addition to the sentence prescribed for
the offense to--
(1) a term of imprisonment of not more than ten years if the offense is
a felony;
....
A term of imprisonment imposed under this section shall be
consecutive to any other sentence of imprisonment.
18 U.S.C. § 3147. The Sentencing Guidelines provide that if an enhancement
under § 3147 applies, a defendant’s offense level is increased by three levels. See
U.S.S.G. § 2J1.7 (Nov. 2005).
The application of § 3147, and consequent assessment of § 2J1.7’s 3-level
increase to the offense level to enhance a sentence, to the crime of failing to appear
under § 3146 is a question of first impression in this Circuit. As we explain, in
light of the unambiguous language of the pertinent statutes and our sister circuits’
consistent treatment of this very issue, we are unpersuaded by Clemendor’s
argument that the applicable statutory provisions are ambiguous and that this Court
should interpret them in a manner favorable to him under the rule of lenity.
See Dunn v. United States 442 U.S. 100, 112 (1979) (discussing the rule of lenity).
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Because we conclude the district court did not err by applying the enhancement
provision of § 3147, we also find that the increase to Clemendor’s offense level
was not error. Nor do we find that the 2006 amendments to the Sentencing
Guidelines change the application of § 2J1.7 to Clemendor’s offense level.
“[I]n the case of statutory construction, our analysis begins with the
language of the statute. And where the statutory language provides a clear answer,
it ends there as well.” Hughes Aircraft Co. v. Jacobson, 535 U.S. 432, 438 (1999)
(citation and quotations marks omitted); see also Estate of Cowart v. Nicklos
Drilling Co., 505 U.S. 469, 475 (1992) (“In a statutory construction case, the
beginning point must be the language of the statute, and when a statute speaks with
clarity to an issue[,] judicial inquiry into the statute’s meaning, in all but the most
extraordinary circumstance, is finished.”). Simply put, in the face of an
unambiguous criminal statute, the rule of lenity does not apply. See United States
v. Johnson, 529 U.S. 53, 59 (2000); see also Albernaz v. United States, 450 U.S.
333, 342 (1981) (observing that the rule of lenity “serves only as an aid for
absolving an ambiguity; it is not used to beget one.”).
Here, the language of § 3147 provides a clear answer. The statute
unambiguously applies to defendants, such as Clemendor, who are convicted of an
offense committed while on release. Because Clemendor was convicted of
violating § 3146 while released under Chapter 207, the enhancement under § 3147
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applied for purposes of sentencing. Our conclusion that § 3147 is not ambiguous,
even where the underlying crime is a violation of § 3146, is consistent with the
analysis of this issue by our sister circuits. As the Fourth Circuit has held:
“Section 3147 plainly applies, without exception, to offense committed while on
release under Chapter 207 of Title 18. Fitzgerald’s failure to appear, which
violated § 3146, is clearly an offense committed while on release under chapter
207.” United States v. Fitzgerald, 435 F.3d 484, 486 (4th Cir. 2006).
Speaking to the very same issue, the Sixth Circuit also has rejected a
defendant’s argument that § 3147 was ambiguous. See United States v. Benson,
134 F.3d 787, 788 (6th Cir. 1988) (“Section 3147 is not ambiguous, as it clearly
states that it applies to ‘a person convicted of an offense committed while under
release under this chapter [207] . . . [and] clearly and unambiguously mandates that
the courts impose additional consecutive sentences on persons convicted of crimes
they committed while released on bond.” (citation omitted)); Accord United States
v. Patterson, 820 F.2d 1524, 1526 (9th Cir. 1987).
Because the plain and unambiguous language of § 3147 makes clear that the
statute applies, without exception, to offenses committed while on release under
Chapter 207 of Title 18, Clemendor’s violation of § 3146 comes within the ambit
of § 3147. Moreover, application of the sentencing enhancement of § 3147 to a §
3146 offense does not amount to double counting, nor does it implicate principles
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of Double Jeopardy. Clemendor suggests that he is being punished twice for the
same conduct. However, for Double Jeopardy purposes, the test is not whether
Congressionally authorized penalties amount to a double counting. Indeed, the
Supreme Court has held, in connection with a challenge to another sentence-
enhancing statutory provision, 18 U.S.C. § 924(c), which enhances a sentence for
using, carrying, or possessing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of
violence or a drug trafficking crime, that the Double Jeopardy Clause is not
implicated when Congress imposes cumulative or multiple penalties. See Whalen
v. United States, 445 U.S. 684, 688-89 (1980).
Rather, a double jeopardy violation occurs when courts impose cumulative
or multiple penalties without Congressional authorization. Id. “[S]imply because
two criminal statutes may be construed to proscribe the same conduct . . . does not
mean that the Double Jeopardy clause precludes the imposition, in a single trial, of
cumulative punishments pursuant to those statutes.” Missouri v. Hunter, 459 U.S.
359, 366 (1983). As we have observed, “[w]here the legislature mandates
cumulative punishments under two statutes, regardless of whether those statutes
proscribe the same course of conduct, the trial court must impose cumulative
punishment.” United States v. Strickland, 261 F.3d 1271, 1274 (11th Cir. 2001)
(emphasis added). Here, because no cumulative or multiple punishment was
imposed, let alone was imposed without Congressional authorization, the district
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court did not err by applying § 3147’s enhancement provision to a § 3146
violation. Indeed, we could reach no other result given the plain and unambiguous
language of Congress on the matter.
Because 18 U.S.C. § 3147 unambiguously applies when, as here, a defendant
has been convicted of an offense under Chapter 207 of Title 18, it is equally clear
that the district court did not err in applying U.S.S.G. § 2J1.7 when calculating
Clemendor’s advisory Guidelines range. Clemendor’s base offense level, before
any adjustments, for failing to report for service of his sentence, a violation of §
3146(a)(2), was 11. See U.S.S.G. § 2J1.6(a)(1) (Nov. 2005). In calculating a
defendant’s offense level, where a defendant has committed an offense while on
release, the applicable version of the Sentencing Guidelines provides: “If an
enhancement under 18 U.S.C. § 3147 applies, add three levels to the offense level
for the offense committed while on release as if this section were a specific offense
characteristic contained in the offense guidelines for the offense committed while
on release.” U.S.S.G. § 2J1.7 (Nov. 2005). The application notes state that
“[b]ecause 18 U.S.C. § 3147 is an enhancement provision, rather than an offense,
this section provides a specific offense characteristic to increase the offense level
for the offense committed while on release.” U.S.S.G. § 2J1.7 cmt. (n.1) (2005).
Because Clemendor was subject to a § 3147 enhancement, § 2J1.7 applied to
him. Section 2J1.7 gives effect to the unambiguous language of § 3147, which
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mandates that an additional consecutive penalty be imposed when a defendant
commits an offense while on release. The commentary to § 2J1.7 explains that “in
order to comply with [§ 3147], [a court] should divide the sentence on the
judgment form between the sentence attributable to the underlying offense and the
sentence attributable to the enhancement.” U.S.S.G. § 2J1.7 comment. (n.2).
Clemendor urges that application of both § 2J1.6 and § 2J1.7 resulted in improper
double counting under the Sentencing Guidelines. Again, we are unpersuaded by
his argument.
Clemendor’s base offense level for a violation of § 3146 is found in § 2J1.6,
which concerns Clemendor’s offense of conviction. Section 3147, in turn, and the
related Guidelines provision, § 2J1.7, constitutes “an enhancement provision,
rather than an offense [and] provides a specific offense characteristic to increase
the offense level for the offense committed while on release.” § 2J1.7 comment.
(n.1). Because § 2J1.6 sets the base offense level for violations of 18 U.S.C. §
3146, while § 2J1.7 is an enhancement provision related to 18 U.S.C. § 3147, these
two Guidelines sections concern “conceptually separate notions relating to
sentencing.” United States v. Jackson, 276 F.3d 1231, 1235-36 (11th Cir. 2001).
We have held:
Impermissible double counting occurs only when one part of the
Guidelines is applied to increase a defendant’s punishment on account
of a kind of harm that has already been fully accounted for by
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application of another part of the Guidelines. We presume that the
Sentencing Commission intended separate guidelines sections to
apply cumulatively, unless specifically directed otherwise. Double
counting a factor during sentencing is permitted if the Sentencing
Commission . . . intended that result and each guideline section in
question concerns conceptually separate notions relating to
sentencing.
United States v. Dudley, 463 F.3d 1221, 1226-27 (11th Cir. 2006) (internal
quotations and citations omitted). On the instant record, there was no double
counting under the Guidelines.
We also are unpersuaded by Clemendor’s argument that Amendment 684 to
the Sentencing Guidelines, which had an effective date after Clemendor’s sentence
was imposed on October 11, 2006, changes the result in his case. “When
reviewing the district court’s application of the sentencing guidelines, we apply the
version of the guidelines in effect on the date of the sentencing hearing.” United
States v. Descent, 292 F.3d 703, 707 (11th Cir. 2002). However, we will consider
amendments that clarify the Guidelines regardless of the date of sentencing. Id.
“Clarifying amendments do not effect a substantive change, but provide persuasive
evidence of how the Sentencing Commission originally envisioned application of
the relevant guideline.” Id. Notably, Amendment 684 is not included in the list of
amendments to be applied retroactively. See U.S.S.G. § 1B1.10(c).
On November 1, 2006, pursuant to Amendment 684, section 2J1.7 was
deleted from the Guidelines and a new § 3C1.3 was added. See U.S.S.G. App. C,
14
Amendment 684. Like former § 2J1.7, the new § 3C1.3 provides for a 3-level
increase in the offense level if § 3147 applies. Id. Amendment 684 explains that
the enhancement provision was moved from Chapter Two to Chapter Three in
order to “ensure[ ] the enhancement is not overlooked and is consistent with other
enhancements in Chapter Three, all of which apply to a broad range of offenses.”
Id. Amendment 684 also changed the heading to Chapter Three, Part C by adding
“AND RELATED ADJUSTMENTS” to the end. Id. Accordingly, the heading to
Chapter Three, Part C now reads, “PART C - OBSTRUCTION AND RELATED
ADJUSTMENTS.” U.S.S.G. § 3C.
We need not decide whether the amendment that deleted § 2J1.7 and created
a similarly worded section in § 3C1.3 was a clarifying amendment or not because
even if it retroactively applied to Clemendor, it would not change the result. The
commentary to Amendment 684 makes clear that the three-level enhancement
applicable to § 3147 offenses was moved from Chapter Two to Chapter Three to
ensure that the enhancement is not overlooked, and not to narrow its applicability
in § 3146 cases, as Clemendor suggests. Indeed, there is no indication, express or
implied, that the amendment was made to affect § 3146 cases, in particular. In
short, because we find no support for Clemendor’s contention that moving the
provision from § 2J1.7 to § 3C1.3 effected a substantive change on the application
15
of the enhancement to § 3146 offenses, even if he was entitled to retroactive
application of Amendment 684, it would not change the result here.
Finally, Clemendor contends that his 37-month sentence was unreasonable
and that a lesser sentence would have satisfied the 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) factors. He
also argues that because he would not have received a three-level enhancement if
he had been sentenced after the 2006 Guidelines amendments went into effect, the
district court created an unwarranted sentencing disparity by applying the
enhancement in his case. He also notes that he failed to appear because he had to
find someone to care for his three-year-old daughter.
We have held that “[i]n reviewing the ultimate sentence imposed by the
district court for reasonableness, we consider the final sentence, in its entirety, in
light of the § 3553(a) factors.” United States v. Martin, 455 F.3d 1227, 1237 (11th
Cir. 2006) (brackets in original) (citation omitted). The district court need not
discuss each factor or state on the record that it has explicitly considered each
factor. Talley, 431 F.3d at 786. Rather, an acknowledgment by the district court
that it has considered the defendant’s arguments and the § 3553(a) factors will
suffice. Id.
Review for reasonableness is deferential, and the relevant inquiry is
“whether the sentence imposed by the district court fails to achieve the purposes of
sentencing as stated in section 3553(a).” Id. at 788. Moreover, “[t]here is a range
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of reasonable sentences from which the district court may choose,” and although a
sentence within the Guidelines range will not be considered to be per se
reasonable, “when the district court imposes a sentence within the advisory
Guidelines range, we will expect the choice to be a reasonable one.” Id. at 787-88.
The burden of proving that the sentence is unreasonable in light of the record and
the § 3553(a) factors rests on the party challenging the sentence. United States v.
Wilks, 464 F.3d 1240, 1245 (11th Cir.), cert. denied, 127 S. Ct. 693 (2006).
Here, the district expressly stated that it had considered the § 3553(a)
factors, and although the court did not discuss each factor on the record, it was not
required to do so, and its acknowledgment that it considered all of the factors is
sufficient. Talley, 431 F.3d at 786. The court heard Clemendor’s argument and
considered his evidence in support of mitigation, including Clemendor’s testimony,
his mother’s testimony and letters from his mother. Moreover, the court
considered and rejected Clemendor’s argument that he failed to appear because he
was concerned about his daughter’s needs.1 In short, Clemendor has not met his
1
As for Clemendor’s contentions that the 37-month sentence was unreasonable because a
lower sentence would have sufficed, and that 2006 amendments to the Guidelines should be
considered in the § 3553(a) calculus, despite that they were effective only after his sentencing, lacks
merit. It is well-settled that as a general matter, there is a range of sentences from which the district
court may choose. Talley, 431 F.3d at 788. On this record, Talley has not shown unreasonableness
based on the 2006 amendments, which did not apply to his sentence.
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burden of showing that the 37-month sentence was unreasonable, in light of the
advisory Guidelines range and the § 3553(a) factors.
AFFIRMED.
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