United States v. Velez-Moreno, 8:18-cr-00161

Jose Leopoldo Martinez-Rodriguez was convicted of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute over five kilograms of cocaine aboard a vessel subject to U.S. jurisdiction.
He was sentenced to the statutory minimum of 120 months (10 years) in prison, with no criminal history points and a criminal history category of I.
Martinez-Rodriguez moved pro se for a sentence reduction pursuant to Amendment 821 of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which allows a two-level reduction for certain first-time offenders.
The United States Probation Office reviewed his case and concluded a reduced sentence under Amendment 821 would fall below the statutory minimum, which is not permitted.
The appointed Federal Defender confirmed Martinez-Rodriguez was already serving the minimum sentence and declined to further move for a reduction.
The court ultimately denied the motion, emphasizing the seriousness of the offense and policy concerns about deterrence.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Eligibility for reduction under Amendment 821	Martinez-Rodriguez argued he qualifies for a two-level reduction as a first-time offender under the new amendment.	The probation office and Federal Defender argued the reduction would bring the sentence below the statutory minimum and thus is not permitted.	Court ruled he is not eligible for a reduction below the mandatory minimum.
Court's discretion to reduce sentence despite mandatory minimum	Argued the court could use its discretion and the guideline amendment to lower his sentence.	Government emphasized the statutory minimum cannot be reduced by guideline amendments.	Court held it has no discretion to reduce below the statutory minimum.
Consistency with § 3553(a) factors	Claimed the new guideline and his circumstances justified a lower sentence.	Government argued such a reduction would not reflect the seriousness of the offense or promote deterrence.	Court found reduction would undermine § 3553(a) objectives.
Procedural fairness (pro se opportunity)	N/A (No further filings made by defendant)	N/A	Court provided opportunity for pro se input but nothing filed; proceeded to denial.

No official reporter cases were cited in this order; it relied on statutes and sentencing guidelines principles.