8th Circuit decides N.D. cases Thursday, August 29, 2024

The 8th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed the district court ruling in United States v. John Richmond, U.S. Court of Appeals Case No: 24-1752.

Read the full opinion here: https://ecf.ca8.uscourts.gov/opndir/-24/08/241752U.pdf

The 8th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed the district court ruling in U.S. United States v. Shawn Scherer, U.S. Court of Appeals Case No: 23-2402.

"In 2011, Shawn Scherer was convicted of possessing a firearm as a felon and sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release. Shortly after beginning his supervised release, he tested positive for methamphetamine and absconded, leading to the revocation of his supervised release in June 2020. He was sentenced to 10 months’ imprisonment and three more years of supervised release. Scherer violated the conditions of his second supervised-release term, resulting in another revocation in April 2021 and a sentence of 14 months’ imprisonment and 24 months of supervised release. During his third term, he again violated conditions, leading to state charges and federal revocation proceedings.

The United States District Court for the District of North Dakota revoked Scherer’s supervised release multiple times due to repeated violations, including drug use and absconding from reentry centers. At his latest revocation hearing, Scherer admitted to the violations. The government requested a sentence within the Guidelines’ range of 8 to 14 months, while Scherer’s counsel highlighted his positive activities while incarcerated. The district court, however, noted Scherer’s consistent non-compliance with supervised release conditions and sentenced him to 36 months’ imprisonment with no supervised release.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit reviewed the case. Scherer argued that the district court abused its discretion by limiting his counsel’s argument and that his sentence was substantively unreasonable. The Eighth Circuit held that any error in limiting counsel’s argument was harmless, as the mitigating factors were already presented through other means. The court also found the 36-month sentence substantively reasonable, given Scherer’s repeated violations and failure to comply with supervised release conditions. Therefore, the Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court’s decision." (https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/ca8/23-2402/23-2402-2024-08-29.html)

Read the full opinion here: https://ecf.ca8.uscourts.gov/opndir/24/08/232402P.pdf