United States v. Eddie Roberts, 763 F.3d 947

Roberts was convicted of two counts of bank robbery under 18 U.S.C. § 2113(a) and sentenced to life imprisonment based on two prior serious violent felonies.
Roberts had a 1993 sequence of four bank robberies; three involved threats to shoot bank tellers; the 1999 robbery involved driving and no bank entry, with suspicion about a gun in Mitchell’s glove box.
In 1999, Roberts’s conviction was affirmed; this court noted Mitchell stated threat components in the robbery.
In May 2012, Roberts was charged with two counts of bank robbery and the government sought mandatory life sentences under § 3559(c)(1) based on two or more prior serious violent felonies.
Section 3559(c)(1) defines life imprisonment for serious violent felonies; § 3559(c)(3) provides an affirmative defense allowing nonqualifying prior robberies if the defendant proves no firearm use or threat.
At sentencing in December 2012, the parties counted Roberts’s 1993 convictions as a single predicate and treated at least one as qualifying; Roberts argued the 1999 conviction was nonqualifying because he did not use a gun, and no threat occurred.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Must a jury find prior convictions when they raise a higher penalty?	Roberts relies on Alleyne to require jury findings for facts increasing penalty.	Almendarez-Torres remains controlling; recidivism is not an element requiring jury determination.	No reversal; prior-conviction findings need not be jury-found; recidivism not element.
Is § 3559(c)(3)’s burden shifting constitutional for nonqualifying predicates?	Statute burdens defendant to prove nonqualifying status, potentially violating Fifth/Sixth Amendments.	Burden shifting is constitutional as a non-essential element affirmative defense; Alleyne not to the contrary.	Constitutional; burden-shifting defense preserved.

Almendarez-Torres v. United States, 523 U.S. 224 (1998) (recidivism not element requiring jury determination)
Alleyne v. United States, 133 S. Ct. 2151 (2013) (not revisiting recidivist-element rule; jury requirement not extended here)
United States v. Davis, 260 F.3d 965 (8th Cir. 2001) (burden-shifting affirmative defense for nonqualifying felonies constitutional)
United States v. Williams, 308 F.3d 833 (8th Cir. 2002) (support for affirmative-defense framework)
United States v. Abrahamson, 731 F.3d 751 (8th Cir. 2013) (reiterates interpretation of prior-conviction issues post-Alleyne)
United States v. Harris, 741 F.3d 1245 (11th Cir. 2014) (reviews interplay of Alleyne and recidivist determinations)
United States v. Lucas, 542 F. App’x 510 (6th Cir. 2013) (per curiam view on nonrevisit of jury requirement)