United States v. Justin Cabot

NOT PRECEDENTIAL
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT
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No. 11-3906
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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
v.
JUSTIN CABOT,
Appellant
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On Appeal from the United States District Court
for the District of New Jersey
(D.C. No. 2-09-cr-00458-001)
District Judge: Honorable Susan D. Wigenton
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Submitted Pursuant to Third Circuit LAR 34.1(a)
June 26, 2012
Before: FISHER and GREENBERG, Circuit Judges, and OLIVER, District Judge. *
(Opinion Filed: July 19, 2012)
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OPINION OF THE COURT
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*
The Honorable Solomon Oliver, Jr., Chief Judge of the United States District
Court for the Northern District of Ohio, sitting by designation.
OLIVER, District Judge.
I.
Appellant Justin Cabot (“Cabot”) was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 132
months after he pled guilty to bank robbery, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2113(a). In this
appeal, Cabot argues that the district court abused its discretion by unduly anchoring its
sentence in the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines (the “Guidelines”), and thereby failed to
arrive at a sentence that was “sufficient, but not greater than necessary” to meet the
varied goals of sentencing as set forth in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a). For the reasons that
follow, we affirm.
II.
Because we write primarily for the benefit of the parties, we assume familiarity
with the facts and history of this criminal case, and discuss only those facts necessary to
our analysis. On the afternoon of August 30, 2008, Cabot entered a bank in Linden, New
Jersey, and approached a teller’s window, where he slid a note to the teller stating, “No
Ink Packets, No Alarms, No Locked Doors, Money Large to Small in bag & return note.”
(PSR ¶ 17.) The teller alerted a manager, who read the note and proceeded to take a
plastic bag from Cabot and fill it with money. A customer at a nearby station observed
the robbery as it was happening, called 911, and followed Cabot out of the bank. Upon
observing Cabot jump into the backseat of his getaway car, which was driven by Jane
Titus (“Titus”), Cabot’s accomplice, the customer entered her own car and attempted to
block the parking lot exit with her vehicle. Cabot escaped after Titus rammed the
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customer’s car numerous times. The customer, however, continued to follow the
getaway car and remained on the phone with the police. Linden Police Department
officers eventually cornered Cabot’s getaway car in traffic, and recovered a clear plastic
bag containing $804.00. Cabot was then arrested and taken into custody. On November
19, 2009, Cabot pled guilty to bank robbery, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2113(a). Cabot’s
sentencing was delayed for a significant period of time, which allowed for the preparation
of a thorough presentence investigation report (“PSR”).
Based on his adult criminal history, which spanned approximately 15 years and
included multiple robbery convictions, Cabot qualified as a career offender under the
Guidelines. See U.S.S.G. § 4B1.1. His career offender classification resulted in an
offense level of 29 and a criminal history category of VI, thus providing for a Guideline
range of between 151 and 188 months. U.S.S.G. Ch.5, Part A. In the proceedings below,
Cabot did not dispute that he qualified as a career offender, nor does he on appeal.
However, because the Guidelines are advisory in nature, and because Cabot presented
compelling evidence of rehabilitation, Cabot urged the district court to impose a sentence
closer to his non-career offender Guideline range of 46 to 57 months.
Cabot’s PSR showed that he was a 36 year old man, who had a troubled childhood
marked by significant physical and mental abuse, first at the hands of his father, a
Vietnam War veteran who suffered from post-traumatic stress syndrome and alcoholism,
and then at the hands of his step-father, whom Cabot’s mother married when Cabot was
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12. Cabot’s mother also suffered from drug and alcohol addiction. Before he was a
teenager, Cabot developed substance abuse problems of his own, drinking liquor and
experimenting with a number of heavy drugs. At age 20, he pled guilty to a series of
robberies, and as a result, was incarcerated for the majority of his twenties. After his
release, his interactions with the criminal justice system continued, culminating in the
instant offense.
From the time of the arrest for his latest offense in August of 2008 to the time of
his sentencing in September of 2011, however, Cabot made significant strides in
overcoming his addictions and dealing with his anger and mental health issues. Prior to
his sentencing hearing, Cabot submitted evidence showing that he was an active
participant in twelve-step recovery and anger management programs and had used the
lessons he had learned to impact others in positive ways. He submitted a number of
exhibits to the court, including inter alia, letters of support from mental health
professionals at Mercer County Corrections Center, where he was incarcerated, and
letters from fellow inmates speaking to the support he had provided them on their own
paths to recovery.
At his sentencing hearing, Cabot spoke eloquently about his capacity to contribute
to society in light of his sobriety and progress. The Assistant U.S. Attorney
acknowledged that Cabot had “had a very rough life,” and stated that he was “impressed
by Mr. Cabot,” particularly by the fact that Cabot did not attempt to minimize his
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criminal behavior, but instead “clearly took steps to correct his wrongdoings and what
ultimately got him here, which is the drugs and the alcohol.” (Sentencing Hr’g Tr. 23-24,
Dist. Ct. Dkt. #55.) Based on the severity of his latest offense and Cabot’s overall
criminal history, however, the Assistant U.S. Attorney stated that “a Guideline range is
appropriate.” (Id. 26.) The district court was similarly “struck” by Mr. Cabot, id., and
noted that “the person that committed this offense, appears to be a very different person
today.” (Id. 28.) After considering a number of factors, including Cabot’s criminal
history and the nature of his latest offense, the court concluded that a downward variance
below the Guideline range was justified: “because of the person that I see today, because
of the letters that were provided to the Court, and because of what you’ve said.” (Id. 30.)
The court varied from a Guidelines offense level of 29 to an offense level of 27, and
imposed a sentence of 132 months, 19 months less than the lower end of his actual
Guideline range. This timely appeal followed.
III.
We have jurisdiction pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3742(a) and 28 U.S.C. § 1291. We
review the district court’s sentence under an abuse of discretion standard. United States
v. Tomko, 562 F.3d 558, 567 (3d Cir. 2009) (en banc). This Court has previously
explained that, pursuant to United States v. Booker, 543 U.S. 220 (2005), district courts
must follow a three-step process at sentencing:
(1) Courts must continue to calculate a defendant’s Guidelines sentence
precisely as they would have before Booker. (2) In doing so, they must
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formally rule on the motions of both parties and state on the record whether
they are granting a departure and how that departure affects the Guidelines
calculation, and take into account our Circuit’s pre-Booker case law, which
continues to have advisory force. (3) Finally, they are required to exercise
their discretion by considering the relevant § 3553(a) factors in setting the
sentence they impose regardless whether it varies from the sentence
calculated under the Guidelines.
United States v. Fisher, 502 F.3d 293, 307-08 (3d Cir. 2007) (quoting United States v.
Gunter, 462 F.3d 237, 247 (3d Cir. 2006)). Ordinarily, our review “begins by ‘ensur[ing]
that the district court committed no significant procedural error, such as failing to
calculate (or improperly calculating) the Guidelines range, treating the Guidelines as
mandatory, failing to consider the § 3553(a) factors, selecting a sentence based on clearly
erroneous facts, or failing to adequately explain the chosen sentence—including an
explanation for any deviation from the Guidelines range.’” Tomko, 562 F.3d at 567(quoting Gall v. United States, 552 U.S. 38, 51 (2007)) (alteration in original). Here,
Cabot does not challenge his sentence on procedural grounds, and our independent
review does not reveal any procedural error. Thus, our discussion is limited to the
substantive reasonableness of the sentence. See Tomko, F.3d at 567-68; Gall, 552 U.S. at
51.
In reviewing the substantive reasonableness of the sentence, we “take into account
the totality of the circumstances, including the extent of any variance from the Guidelines
range.” Gall, 552 U.S. at 51. This Court has previously noted that “[s]ubstantive
reasonableness inquires into whether the final sentence, wherever it may lie within the
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permissible statutory range, was premised upon appropriate and judicious consideration
of the relevant factors.” United States v. Doe, 617 F.3d 766, 770 (3d Cir. 2010) (internal
quotation marks and citation omitted); see also United States v. Lessner, 498 F.3d 185,
204 (3d Cir. 2007) (“For a sentence to be substantively reasonable, the district court must
apply the § 3553(a) factors reasonably to the circumstances of the case.”).
In light of the sentencing court’s superior position to find facts and determine their
weight under § 3553(a), our substantive reasonableness inquiry “must be highly
deferential.” United States v. Merced, 603 F.3d 203, 214 (3d Cir. 2010) (citing Tomko,
562 F.3d at 568). This Court has further explained that “if the district court’s sentence is
procedurally sound, we will affirm it unless no reasonable sentencing court would have
imposed the same sentence on that particular defendant for the reasons the district court
provided.” Tomko, 562 F.3d at 568.
IV.
On appeal, Cabot argues that the district court abused its discretion because, in
granting a “modest downward variance,” it “only gave a nod to the § 3553(a)[] factors”
and thus imposed a substantively unreasonable sentence. (Appellant’s Br. 26.) The
record reflects otherwise.
As an initial matter, the district court made clear that it had the discretion to
impose a sentence that is “sufficient but not greater than necessary” based on Cabot’s
history and personal characteristics, and not just on a “mechanical calculation about what
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the appropriate sentence is.” (Sentencing Hr’g Tr. 28.) The judge expressly considered
the fact that Cabot had progressed considerably since entering his guilty plea, and took
note of his “sincerity”, id. 26, and various submissions to the court. The court’s decision,
however, “not to give such mitigating factors the weight that [Cabot] contends they
deserve does not render [his] sentence unreasonable.” Lessner, 498 F.3d at 204 (citation
omitted). The judge was also mindful of her obligation to “promote respect for the law”
and “to protect the public,” and took note of “the fact that individuals who are very
innocent were affected greatly . . . as a result of [Cabot’s] actions.” (Sentencing Hr’g Tr.
27-29.) Despite these concerns, the judge concluded that a downward variance from the
Guidelines range was appropriate, and we find that such a variance was reasonable given
the record before the district court. See Fisher, 502 F.3d at 308 (“[D]istrict judges are
free to vary-one way or the other-from the advisory Guidelines, provided that those
variations are reasonable under the circumstances.”).
Even if a greater variance might have been justified in light of Cabot’s significant
progress, the “fact that the appellate court might reasonably have concluded that a
different sentence was appropriate is insufficient to justify reversal of the district court.”
Gall, 552 U.S. at 51. In other words, “[a]s long as a sentence falls within the broad range
of possible sentences that can be considered reasonable in light of the § 3553(a) factors,
we must affirm.” United States v. Wise, 515 F.3d 207, 218 (3d Cir. 2008). Because
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Cabot’s sentence falls within this “broad range,” and was based on a judicious
consideration of the § 3553(a) factors, we find that it is substantively reasonable. 1
The United States (the “Government”) also construes Cabot’s appeal as raising a
claim of error rooted in policy-based disagreements with the career-offender Guideline,
U.S.S.G. § 4B1.1, which Cabot asserts is “untethered to the goals of sentencing [of] . . . .
just deserts, deterrence, and incapacitation,” (Appellant’s Br. 21), and with the federal
sentencing scheme as a whole, which Cabot contends unduly “anchors a court to the
guidelines calculation far more than any other factor a court must consider.” (Id. 15.)
Because Cabot did not raise such arguments below, the Government maintains that these
arguments may only be reviewed for plain error. See United States v. Ward, 626 F.3d
179, 183 (3d Cir. 2010); Fed. R. Crim. P. 52(b). In order to prevail under plain error
review, the defendant “must establish an error that is plain, which affected his substantial
rights, and which, if not rectified, would seriously affect the fairness, integrity or public
reputation of judicial proceedings.” Ward, 626 F.3d at 183 (citation omitted).
However, we do not read Cabot’s brief as raising a claim of error rooted in general
policy-based disagreements. While much of Cabot’s brief is devoted to critiquing the
career offender guideline and the federal sentencing scheme generally, Cabot
1
This Court’s decision in United States v. Olshovsky, 562 F.3d 530 (3d Cir. 2009)
is distinguishable. There, the Court found that a below-Guideline range sentence was
nevertheless substantively unreasonable in light of a number of procedural errors by the
district court, including “minimal consideration” of the defendant’s mitigating evidence.
Id. at 552-53. No such procedural errors were committed in this case.
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nevertheless concedes that he “did not ask the sentencing court to disagree with the career
offender guideline on policy grounds,” and does not now “contend that the drastic career
offender enhancements to criminal history and base offense level render the guideline
unreasonable per se.” (Appellant’s Br. 28.)
In any event, even if Cabot were now, for the first time, challenging the
application of the career offender guideline on policy grounds, the record in this case
reveals no error, let alone plain error, on the part of the district court. This Court has
explained that “if the District Court intends to vary downward based on a policy
disagreement with § 4B1.1, it must . . . explain and justify that decision. . . . [through a]
reasoned, coherent, and ‘sufficiently compelling’ explanation of the basis for the court’s
disagreement.” Merced, 603 F.3d at 219-20 (quoting United States v. Lychock, 578 F.3d
214, 219 (3d Cir. 2009)) (emphasis in original). 2 However, a district court is not required
“to reject a particular Guidelines range where that court does not, in fact, have
disagreement with the Guideline at issue” or to “engage in ‘independent analysis’ of the
empirical justifications and deliberative undertakings that led to a particular Guideline.”
United States v. Lopez-Reyes, 589 F.3d 667, 671 (3d Cir. 2009) (citation omitted). And
where, as here, the defendant did not raise policy-based reasons for varying from the
2
In Merced, this Court declined to rule on the question whether district courts in
fact have the authority to vary from the Guideline based on a policy disagreement with
U.S.S.G. § 4B1.1, and assumed so based on the Government’s concession of that point.
Merced, 603 F.3d at 218-19. Nevertheless, we noted that the view that district courts
may not vary from § 4B1.1 on policy grounds is “falling out of favor.” Id. at 218.
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Guideline range, the district court was “not required to manufacture grounds . . . not
clearly raised on the record[.]” United States v. Dragon, 471 F.3d 501, 505 (3d Cir.
2006).
As noted above, the record reflects that the district court was well aware of the
advisory nature of the Guidelines and its authority to vary from the Guideline range based
on Cabot’s individual circumstances. Indeed, the court imposed a sentence below the
bottom end of Cabot’s Guideline range based on evidence of rehabilitation. Moreover,
Cabot’s broader critique that the three-step sentencing process unduly “anchors a court to
the guidelines calculation far more than any other factor a court must consider,” is
foreclosed by Booker and its progeny, which sets forth the three-step process district
courts must follow in sentencing defendants. The Supreme Court has explained that “[a]s
a matter of administration and to secure nationwide consistency, the Guidelines should be
the starting point and the initial benchmark.” Gall, 552 U.S. at 49. Indeed, the failure to
correctly calculate the Guideline range can constitute procedural error warranting vacatur
of a sentence. See Merced, 603 F.3d at 214. However, as the Court has also explained,
the Guidelines “are not the only consideration [;] . . . [the judge] must make an
individualized assessment based on the facts presented.” Gall, 552 U.S. at 50. The
record reflects that the district court did, in fact, conduct such an individualized
assessment. We therefore will affirm.
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V.
For the reasons stated above, we will affirm the sentence.
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