843 F.3d 1162
7th Cir.2016Background
- Jamie Golden (convicted of conspiracy to distribute cocaine; served ~8 years) was on supervised release when the probation office filed a petition to revoke for alleged theft, failure to report, and missed drug tests.
- While detained at Sangamon County Jail pending revocation, Golden joined an assault on another inmate; video showed him body slamming, punching, and kicking the victim’s head area.
- Illinois charged Golden with aggravated battery and mob action; the probation office added those charges to the revocation petition.
- At the revocation hearing the district court found Golden committed aggravated battery (and mob action), treated the battery as a Grade A violation, revoked his supervised release, and sentenced him to 42 months’ imprisonment plus three years’ supervised release with conditions.
- On appeal Golden challenged (1) the finding of aggravated battery, (2) whether aggravated battery qualifies as a Grade A “crime of violence” under the Guidelines, and (3) the duration and certain conditions of the new supervised release term.
- The Seventh Circuit affirmed: the battery on county-jail property was aggravated, the conduct was a crime of violence under Guidelines application-note approach, and Golden waived challenges to length and conditions by requesting/withdrawing objections at the hearing.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Golden committed aggravated battery (and mob action) while detained | Golden conceded battery but argued the jail was not shown to be "public property," so aggravated-battery on that basis was not proved | Government pointed to video, testimony, and that county jails are public property | Court held aggravated battery proved; county jail is public property and the judge implicitly found that fact |
| Whether aggravated battery is a Grade A violation ("crime of violence") under the Guidelines | Golden argued the categorical approach shows aggravated battery can include nonviolent variants, so it is not necessarily a "crime of violence" under the elements clause | Government and court relied on Application Note 1 requiring assessment of the defendant’s actual conduct (not categorical approach); Golden’s violent conduct used physical force against another | Court held Golden’s actual conduct (punching, kicking, body slamming) satisfied the elements clause — Grade A violation |
| Whether the three-year supervised-release duration was erroneous | Golden argued duration was improper | Government defended sentence as within revocation-sentencing standards; court noted Golden actually requested that duration at hearing | Court held challenge waived because Golden requested the three-year term |
| Whether specific supervised-release conditions were improper | Golden challenged four conditions on appeal | Government argued conditions were circulated pre-hearing and Golden withdrew his objections at the hearing | Court held challenge waived by Golden’s affirmative withdrawal of objections |
Key Cases Cited
- United States v. Preacely, 702 F.3d 373 (7th Cir. 2012) (standard of review for revocation and factual findings)
- United States v. McClanahan, 136 F.3d 1146 (7th Cir. 1998) (interpretation of Guidelines reviewed de novo)
- United States v. Trotter, 270 F.3d 1150 (7th Cir. 2001) (Application Note 1 requires considering actual conduct for violation grading)
- United States v. Hurlburt, 835 F.3d 715 (7th Cir. 2016) (residual clause off limits for crime-of-violence analyses)
- United States v. Willis, 795 F.3d 986 (9th Cir. 2015) (contrasting view that categorical approach applies to Grade determinations)
- United States v. Thomas, 934 F.2d 840 (7th Cir. 1991) (appellate courts may affirm on any ground supported by the record)
- People v. Messenger, 40 N.E.3d 417 (Ill. App. Ct. 2015) (county jail is public property for aggravated-battery statute)