United States v. Jennifer Castro, 24-11297

Jennifer Castro filed a motion for compassionate release under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A).
Castro argued that her experience of sexual abuse and her rehabilitation while incarcerated presented extraordinary and compelling reasons for release.
The district court denied her motion, giving more weight to the seriousness of her offense (sex trafficking a minor) and her criminal history than to her arguments for release.
The district court stated it would not have granted relief even if all of Castro's claims were true, as early release would not promote respect for the law or serve as a deterrent.
The government moved for summary affirmance, arguing the trial court acted within its discretion.

Issue	Castro's Argument	Government's Argument	Held
Evidentiary hearing on allegations of sexual abuse	Court erred by not holding a hearing	Not required; record sufficient	No abuse of discretion in denying hearing
Weight given to allegations of sexual abuse	Sexual abuse should be deemed an extraordinary reason	Criminal conduct outweighs any such factor	Court properly weighed factors
Consideration of rehabilitation efforts	Rehabilitation should weigh in favor of release	Seriousness of crime and criminal history are more important	Court did not err in weighing rehabilitation
Statutory sentencing factors	Factors not properly considered or weighed	District court exercised discretion as allowed	District court acted within its discretion

Groendyke Transp., Inc. v. Davis, 406 F.2d 1158 (5th Cir. 1969) (Describes standard for summary disposition on appeal)
United States v. Giron, 15 F.4th 1343 (11th Cir. 2021) (Standard for reviewing denial of compassionate release)
United States v. Tinker, 14 F.4th 1234 (11th Cir. 2021) (Requirements for granting compassionate release)
United States v. Butler, 39 F.4th 1349 (11th Cir. 2022) (Discretion in weighing sentencing factors)
United States v. Cook, 998 F.3d 1180 (11th Cir. 2021) (Requirement to consider statutory sentencing factors)