US v. Fernandez-Cabrera, 09-2655

Defendant's sentecen for illegal reentry conviction affirmed

US v. Fernandez-Cabrera, 09-2655, concerned a defendant's challenge to a district court's imposition of a 33-month sentence upon his conviction for illegal reentry into the United States, claiming that the district court failed to provide advance notice of its intention not to adopt the joint sentencing recommendation and that the court's explanation for the sentencing choice was inadequate. 

In affirming the sentence, the court held that, here, the district court imposed a sentence within the GSR, which was agreed to by the parties and limned in the PSI report, and the parties default expectation should have been that  the court would impose a within-the-range sentence, and thus, there was no special need for notice.  The court also held that the district court's observation that the defendant had entered the United States illegally on five separate occasions and conclusion that a mid-range sentence was appropriate to promote respect for the law and to prevent recidivism, was a sufficient explanation to undergird the court's choice of a 33-month sentence.

Related Link:

• Read the First Circuit's Full Decision in US v. Fernandez-Cabrera, 09-2655