U.S. v. Wilson

841 Fed. Appx. 571

Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals

Decided on January 25, 2021

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Issue:

Did the Government Breach the Plea Agreement?

Whether the Government breached the plea agreement and is released from its obligations under the plea agreement when at sentence defendant objected to the alleged weight of drugs/narcotics.

Holding:

Government Cannot Breach Plea Agreement

The Fourth Circuit held that the Government cannot unilaterally declare itself released from its plea agreement obligations based on a defendant’s alleged breach; therefore the Government breached the plea agreement when it did not advocate for the downward adjustment at sentencing.

Facts:

Calvin Wilson pled guilty to possession and intent to distribute marijuana and heroin. As part of his agreement, the Government agreed to dismiss one other count on which Wilson had been charged and agreed that a three-level downward adjustment was warranted for acceptance of responsibility under § 3E1.1 of the Sentencing Guidelines. The agreement stipulated that the drug quantity attributed to Wilson  for sentencing purposes would be “at least 3 kilograms but less than 10 kilograms of heroin.”

A probation officer then prepared a pre-sentence investigation report (PSR), which held Wilson accountable for 7.48 kg of heroin, putting Wilson’s base offense level at 32. It also recommended several sentencing enhancements, including a two-level enhancement for obstructing justice which might make any reduction for acceptance of responsibility inappropriate. Without credit for acceptance of responsibility, the PSR identified Wilson’s offense level as 43 with a criminal history score of IV resulting in a sentencing guideline of life imprisonment. Wilson filed written objections to the PSR, namely where the PSR attributed less than .2 kg of heroin to Wilson based on drug sales dating back to 2015. Wilson did not challenge a separate paragraph that attributed to him 7.48 kg of heroin.

At the sentencing hearing the Government addressed its motion for “relief from certain obligations under its plea agreement” because, in its view, Wilson materially breached the plea agreement when he objected to the drug-weight attribution. Wilson responded that the objection was not to the drug quantity, but to the timeline, as the PSR had his drug sales activity going back to 2015 instead of 2017. The district court never ruled on the Government’s motion for relief from its plea agreement obligation or made the finding that Wilson breached the agreement. When it came time for sentencing, the Government did not advocate for a downward adjustment for acceptance of responsibility. Without the reduction, the court calculated Wilson’s sentencing guideline consistent with the PSR as life imprisonment. Wilson objected, pointing out the Government’s obligations under the plea agreement. The district court sentenced Wilson to 35 years’ imprisonment. Wilson appealed, contending that the Government breached the terms of the plea agreement by failing to advocate for the downward adjustment.

Analysis:

Government Does Not Declare Breach, a District Court Does

The Government’s sole argument on appeal was that it was freed from its obligations under the plea agreement because Wilson breached the agreement first when he objected to drug attribution quantities to which he had stipulated. But the Fourth Circuit held that the Government cannot breach the plea agreement due to a defendant’s alleged breach. (U.S. v. Simmons, 537, F.2d 1260, 1261 (4th Cir. 1976)). Rather, the Government may be relieved of its obligations under a plea agreement only after a hearing and a district court finding that the defendant has breached (See id; see also U.S. v Cudjoe, 534 F.3d 1349, 1354 (10th Cir. 2008)). The district court never ruled on the Government’s motion and made no mention of relieving it of its plea agreement obligations. Therefore, the Government remained bound to honor its acceptance of responsibility stipulation in full. Its conceded failure to do so constituted a breach. Wilson’s sentence was vacated and remanded for resentencing before a different judge.

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