United States v. Davila-Felix
667 F.3d 47
1st Cir.2011Background
- Dávila-Félix was convicted in March 2009 by a jury of FDIC-insured bank robbery using force and intimidation and related § 924(c) offense.
- The district court sentenced him to life imprisonment under 18 U.S.C. § 3559(c)(1) and to 84 months for the weapons offense, with concurrent supervised release terms.
- The government filed an information under § 851 listing prior Puerto Rico and other convictions as predicate offenses for a life sentence.
- The court relied on two predicate offenses for the life sentence and applied the career offender guideline, resulting in a within-guidelines range of life.
- We reverse the life sentence and the career offender designation due to errors in predicate offense treatment and remand for resentencing.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the three-strikes life sentence was properly triggered | Dávila-Félix argues the third strike must follow the preceding conviction, i.e., sequentially. | Government contends § 3559(c)(1) only requires sequential second strike and allows the instant offense as a later third strike. | Not proper; requires sequential timing for the third strike; reversal. |
| Whether April 2004 convictions can serve as a second strike under § 3559(c)(1) | April 2004 convictions cannot be second strike because the September 2003 robbery predates them. | April 2004 convictions can be treated as a second strike since sequential requirement applies to the second strike. | Incorrect to treat April 2004 as a second strike; sequential requirement not met. |
| Whether June 1993 and July 2000 drug convictions qualify as serious drug offenses for § 3559(c)(1) | These Puerto Rico drug convictions do not clearly meet “serious drug offense” criteria under § 3559(c)(2)(H). | The convictions could serve as predicates if they meet statutory drug offense criteria. | They do not qualify as “serious drug offenses” under § 3559(c)(2)(H). |
| Whether the district court properly applied the career offender guideline § 4B1.1 | April 2004 conviction cannot be treated as a prior qualifying conviction; June 1993 drug convictions do not categorically qualify as controlled substance offenses. | Two prior qualifying offenses were present; the district court properly applied § 4B1.1. | Court erred by treating April 2004 as a prior conviction and by treating June 1993 drug convictions as controlled substance offenses; remand for resentencing. |
Key Cases Cited
- Taylor v. United States, 495 U.S. 575 (1990) (categorical approach for determining predicate offenses)
- United States v. Pratt, 568 F.3d 11 (1st Cir. 2009) (sequential approach in ACCA-like contexts applied to three-strikes)
- United States v. Luna-Diaz, 222 F.3d 1 (1st Cir. 2000) (sequential approach to sentencing enhancements informed by statute language)
- United States v. Piper, 35 F.3d 611 (1st Cir. 1994) (application of categorical approach for predicate offenses under guidelines)
- United States v. Almenas, 553 F.3d 27 (1st Cir. 2009) (career offender predicate analysis under § 4B1.1 (categorical vs. record-based))