Circuit split · criminal sentencing
Whether a district court may sentence below a statutory mandatory minimum based solely on the government's U.S.S.G. § 5K1.1 substantial-assistance motion, absent a motion under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(e)
1 federal appellate case on this question, each acknowledging the disagreement in its own words.
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals · May 19, 1994
“19 There is a split in the circuits as to whether a trial court may depart below a statutory minimum when the government's motion for downward departure is based solely on section 5K1.” — Acknowledges a circuit split
Empirical analysis of this case →
The provision at issue
18 U.S.C. § 3553 — Imposition of a sentence
“(a) Factors To Be Considered in Imposing a Sentence.—The court shall impose a sentence sufficient, but not greater than necessary, to comply with the purposes set forth in paragraph (2) of this subsection. The court, in determining the particular sentence to be imposed, shall consider— (1) the nature and circumstances of the offense and the history and characteristics of the defendant; (2) the need for the sentence imposed— (A) to reflect the seriousness of the offense, to promote respect for the law, and to provide just punishment for the …”Read the full section →
The other side of the split
Decisions the acknowledging court(s) named as the opposing or joined side, quoted in the acknowledging opinion's own words.
- Discussed · 8th Cir.United States v. Rodriguez-Morales958 F.2d 1441
- Discussed · 2d Cir.United States v. Cheng Ah-Kai951 F.2d 490
- Discussed · 9th Cir.United States v. Keene933 F.2d 711
What the split turns on
- Statutes:
- 18 U.S.C. § 3553(e)
Cases are grouped by the legal question they announce a split on, classified from the court's own acknowledgment sentence. Verified acknowledgments only. Counter-side decisions are extracted from the acknowledging opinions' own text and linked only when the citation resolves in this corpus. See all circuit splits.