United States v. Marlon Flores-Granados
2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 6112
| 4th Cir. | 2015Background
- Flores-Granados, a Honduran national, pled guilty in 2013 to illegal reentry after deportation and an aggravated felony conviction.
- He faced a 16-level enhancement under U.S.S.G. § 2L1.2(b)(1)(A)(ii) for a prior crime of violence based on a North Carolina second-degree kidnapping conviction.
- The probation office originally recommended an 8-level enhancement; after objections, the district court adopted the 16-level enhancement.
- The district court relied on a police-record facts to justify the 16-point bump, stating he brandished a gun, broke in, and stabbed the victim during kidnapping.
- The court sentenced Flores-Granados to 57 months after applying the 16-level enhancement.
- On appeal, Flores-Granados challenged both the legal basis for the enhancement and the district court’s use of police-record facts.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Does NC second-degree kidnapping qualify as a crime of violence | Flores-Granados argues statute is broader than generic kidnapping | Government contends statute falls within generic kidnapping as a crime of violence | Yes; NC second-degree kidnapping is a crime of violence |
| May courts rely on police-fetched facts under Shepard/Descamps for a categorical analysis | Use of police reports improperly expanded the offense | Errors in factual reliance do not defeat the classification under the categorical approach | District court erred by considering police-fact details, but the outcome remains supported by the categorical analysis |
Key Cases Cited
- Taylor v. United States, 495 U.S. 575 (1990) (establishes the generic, contemporary meaning framework for kidnapping in the guidelines)
- Descamps v. United States, 133 S. Ct. 2276 (2013) (limits use of divisible statutes to the modified categorical approach)
- Shepard v. United States, 544 U.S. 13 (2005) (permits limited use of certain documents for off-record factual elements)
- United States v. Bonilla, 687 F.3d 188 (4th Cir. 2012) (applies Taylor framework to 2L1.2’s crime of violence definition)
- United States v. King, 673 F.3d 274 (4th Cir. 2012) (discusses equivalence of guidelines and ACCA standards for violence)
- United States v. Aparicio-Soria, 740 F.3d 152 (4th Cir. 2014) (recognizes state-definitional constraints on crimes of violence)
- United States v. Rangel-Castaneda, 709 F.3d 373 (4th Cir. 2013) (cautions against mechanical counting in the categorical approach)