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U.S. top court rules for white supremacist over sentencing
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Fred Cox
Nov 15, 2015, 2:37:39 PM11/15/15
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The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday threw out part of a tough
federal criminal sentencing law for being overly broad in a
ruling that backed a Minnesota white supremacist who challenged
his sentence on a firearms crime.
The court ruled in favor of Samuel Johnson, who was given 15
years in prison for illegally possessing a firearm. The justices
found on a 6-3 vote that a sentencing provision of the federal
Armed Career Criminal Act is so expansive that it violated the
U.S. Constitution's Fifth Amendment, which mandates due process
under the law.
He will now be resentenced and will face a maximum sentence of
10 years. The ruling could also affect other inmates in similar
situations.
The law imposes a minimum 15-year sentence when a defendant is
convicted of possessing a firearm and has previously been
convicted of at least three qualifying crimes, including violent
felonies. The law outlines the crimes covered, including
burglary and arson.
At issue in the case was an additional provision that says the
law also applies to previous convictions that concern "conduct
that presents a serious potential risk of physical injury to
another."
Criminal defense lawyers said the phrase was too vague and
violates the U.S. Constitution's Fifth Amendment, which mandates
due process under the law. The Supreme Court has already had
several cases in recent years touching upon what kind of conduct
should be covered.
Johnson was hit with the additional sentence in 2012 when he
pleaded guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of a
firearm. He had previously been convicted of robbery on two
occasions and possessing a short-barreled shotgun. Johnson's
lawyers argued that merely possessing the shotgun should not
count as a violent felony.
Johnson initially attracted the FBI's attention in 2010 due to
his role with the National Socialist Movement, a white
supremacist group.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/26/us-usa-court-
sentencing-idUSKBN0P61V720150626
federal criminal sentencing law for being overly broad in a
ruling that backed a Minnesota white supremacist who challenged
his sentence on a firearms crime.
The court ruled in favor of Samuel Johnson, who was given 15
years in prison for illegally possessing a firearm. The justices
found on a 6-3 vote that a sentencing provision of the federal
Armed Career Criminal Act is so expansive that it violated the
U.S. Constitution's Fifth Amendment, which mandates due process
under the law.
He will now be resentenced and will face a maximum sentence of
10 years. The ruling could also affect other inmates in similar
situations.
The law imposes a minimum 15-year sentence when a defendant is
convicted of possessing a firearm and has previously been
convicted of at least three qualifying crimes, including violent
felonies. The law outlines the crimes covered, including
burglary and arson.
At issue in the case was an additional provision that says the
law also applies to previous convictions that concern "conduct
that presents a serious potential risk of physical injury to
another."
Criminal defense lawyers said the phrase was too vague and
violates the U.S. Constitution's Fifth Amendment, which mandates
due process under the law. The Supreme Court has already had
several cases in recent years touching upon what kind of conduct
should be covered.
Johnson was hit with the additional sentence in 2012 when he
pleaded guilty to one count of being a felon in possession of a
firearm. He had previously been convicted of robbery on two
occasions and possessing a short-barreled shotgun. Johnson's
lawyers argued that merely possessing the shotgun should not
count as a violent felony.
Johnson initially attracted the FBI's attention in 2010 due to
his role with the National Socialist Movement, a white
supremacist group.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/26/us-usa-court-
sentencing-idUSKBN0P61V720150626
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