US v. Engle, No. 08-4497
In a conviction of defendant for tax evasion, district court's imposition of a sentence to four years' probation, conditioned on the service of eighteen months' home detention with work release and international travel privileges is vacated and remanded where: 1) the district court committed significant procedural error by minimizing of the seriousness of defendant's conduct, failing to consider the relevant policy statements and the need for general deterrence, and insufficiently explaining the reasons for its view that a term of imprisonment was not required; and 2) the sentence imposed was substantively unreasonable because of the district court's improper focus on defendant's financial ability to pay restitution.
Appellate Information
Argued: September 23, 2009
Decided: January 13, 2010
Judges
Opinion by Chief Judge Traxler
Counsel
For Appellant: Matthew Theodore Martens, Office of the US Attorney
For Appellee: James Frank Wyatt, Wyatt & Blake, LLP