8th Circuit decides N.D. case Tuesday, October 17, 2023

In U.S. v. Darnell Morgan, the court held that the district court did not abuse its discretion by varying upwards from the advisory guidelines range on the grounds that the guidelines range did not adequately address the presence of a weapon or the fact that defendant committed the offense while on bond; the district court is not required to give the defendant advance notice of the possibility of a variance; the district court did not base its decision on an erroneous view of the facts, as a mistake in fact the court made was not cited as a basis for the sentencing decision; the district court adequately explained its decision; the sentence was not substantively unreasonable and did not create an unwarranted sentencing disparity with a co-defendant.