United States v. Gregory McLeod
808 F.3d 972
4th Cir.2015Background
- Gregory McLeod pleaded guilty in 2014 to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1).
- The presentence report listed five 1998 South Carolina second-degree burglary convictions, and the district court applied the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA) enhancement, producing a 188-month sentence.
- The district court relied on indictments that charged nighttime entry into named commercial buildings to treat those convictions as burglary predicates under ACCA.
- McLeod preserved two arguments on appeal: (1) the government should have alleged prior convictions in the indictment and proved them to a jury (Fifth and Sixth Amendment challenge), and (2) his South Carolina burglary convictions do not categorically match the generic burglary definition because the state statute’s definitions could include vehicles, watercraft, or aircraft.
- The Fourth Circuit affirmed the conviction (rejecting the indictment/Almendarez-Torres challenge) but vacated the sentence and remanded because the government failed to introduce Shepard-authorized documents showing that at least four plea convictions necessarily involved generic burglary (building/structure) rather than nongeneric alternatives.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether prior convictions supporting ACCA must be alleged in the indictment and proved to a jury | McLeod: prior convictions are elements and must be charged and submitted to a jury (Fifth/Sixth Amendment) | Government: Almendarez‑Torres permits sentencing courts to rely on prior convictions without charging them in the indictment | Rejected McLeod; Almendarez‑Torres controls, so enhancement need not be alleged in the indictment |
| Whether McLeod’s South Carolina second‑degree burglary convictions qualify as ACCA "violent felonies" (generic burglary) | McLeod: SC statute and plea records permit convictions for entry into vehicles/watercraft/aircraft, so they may be nongeneric and cannot qualify | Government: indictments named buildings and charged § 16‑11‑312(B), so modified categorical approach shows generic burglary | Vacated sentence: plea/sentencing records showed McLeod pleaded to a different, "nonviolent" subdivision and government failed to produce Shepard‑authorized documents proving the convictions were for generic burglary; four convictions could not be used as ACCA predicates |
Key Cases Cited
- Almendarez‑Torres v. United States, 523 U.S. 224 (1998) (prior convictions may be treated as sentencing facts and need not be alleged in the indictment)
- Taylor v. United States, 495 U.S. 575 (1990) (ACCA uses a generic categorical definition of burglary: unlawful entry into a building or structure with intent to commit a crime)
- Descamps v. United States, 570 U.S. 254 (2013) (when a statute is divisible, courts may apply the modified categorical approach using a limited set of documents to identify the statutory alternative of conviction)
- Shepard v. United States, 544 U.S. 13 (2005) (limiting the documents a sentencing court may consult under the modified categorical approach to charging documents, plea agreements, plea colloquies, and explicit judicial findings)