United States v. Kenneth Simpson, 932 F.3d 1154

Kenneth Robert Simpson, on supervised release after a child-pornography conviction, had his supervised release revoked for a third time; the district court sentenced him to 24 months imprisonment and reimposed a life term of supervised release with special conditions.
Simpson objected at sentencing to the length of the revocation sentence and to several special conditions for lack of individualized factual findings.
Special Condition No. 23 barred use/possession of audio/visual recording or producing equipment without probation approval; Special Condition No. 24 required periodic polygraph testing at the probation officer's discretion.
The record showed Simpson received between 300 and 600 images of child pornography (all produced with photographic equipment) but was not charged with producing or distributing images; the PSR stated his conduct was limited to receipt/solicitation.
The district court relied on Simpson’s repeated failures to comply with supervision and his statements of intent not to comply when imposing conditions and the revocation sentence.
The Eighth Circuit majority affirmed the sentence and conditions as within the court’s discretion; Judge Kelly dissented in part, arguing Special Condition No. 23 lacked individualized findings and should be vacated.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument (Simpson)	Defendant's Argument (Government / District Court)	Held
Whether 24-month revocation sentence was an abuse of discretion	Sentence is "beyond excessive"	Court properly considered § 3553(a) factors and stayed within statutory limits	Affirmed — no abuse of discretion; sentence below statutory maximum
Whether reimposed or existing supervised-release conditions can be challenged	Objected to reimposition and sought factual findings for special conditions	Reimposition of prior conditions is collateral attack on underlying sentence; conditions justified by record	Rejected Simpson’s collateral-attack argument; conditions permissible
Whether Special Condition No. 24 (polygraph) was justified	Argued lack of necessary factual findings tying condition to individual	Record shows repeated noncompliance and stated refusal to follow terms; testing related to supervision needs	Affirmed — condition reasonably supported by record
Whether Special Condition No. 23 (ban on audio/visual equipment without approval) had adequate individualized findings	Condition lacks individualized factual basis; Simpson not accused of producing/distributing images	Government points to large number of images produced with photographic equipment and ties to offense conduct; probation approval available	Majority: Affirmed as reasonably related to offense and supervision needs; Dissent (Kelly): Vacate and remand for lack of individualized findings

United States v. Fonder, 719 F.3d 960 (8th Cir. 2013) (standard of review for revocation sentences and conditions)
United States v. Wiedower, 634 F.3d 490 (8th Cir. 2011) (need for individualized findings for special conditions)
United States v. Miller, 557 F.3d 910 (8th Cir. 2009) (limits on collateral attack of underlying sentence via supervised-release objections)
United States v. Larison, 432 F.3d 921 (8th Cir. 2006) (review of sentencing for abuse of discretion under § 3553(a))
United States v. Poitra, 648 F.3d 884 (8th Cir. 2011) (district courts encouraged to explain how special conditions satisfy § 3583(d); individualized findings)
United States v. Ristine, 335 F.3d 692 (8th Cir. 2003) (upholding photo-equipment restriction where record showed production/sales and extensive aggravating facts)
United States v. Koch, 625 F.3d 470 (8th Cir. 2010) (upholding special conditions when record shows more than mere possession and defendant’s sophistication)