Monday, May 03, 2021

Hobbs Act Robbery Not “Crime of Violence” Under Guidelines

US v. Green: Green pleaded guilty to Hobbs Act robbery and the parties agreed to a sentence of no less than 120 months in prison. The probation officer classified Green as a career offender, however, raising his advisory Guideline range to 151 to 188 months. Green objected, arguing that his offense of conviction was not a “crime of violence” because that definition was too vague. The district court disagreed, applied the enhancement, and ultimately sentenced Green to 144 months in prison.

On appeal, the Fourth Circuit vacated Green’s sentence. Turning first to the substance of Green’s argument, the court concluded that Hobbs Act robbery does not meet the definition of “crime of violence” used in the Guidelines. In particular, Hobbs Act robbery can be committed by the use of force (or threat thereof) against property, whereas the various crime of violence definitions were limited to the use of force against persons (by contrast to the definition for 18 U.S.C. 924(c), which includes property, meaning Hobbs Act robbery is a crime of violence under that provision). Therefore, it qualified neither under the force clause or under the enumerated offense clause because it was broader than generic robbery. The court then addressed the issue of standard of review, applying de novo review, but concluding that Green would prevail under plain error review as well. It rejected the Government’s argument that plain error should apply because Green’s brief objection in the district court was on different grounds than his arguments on the appeal that the court found persuasive. The court concluded that because Green had raised the claim – that he was not a career offender – before the district court, he could make new arguments in support of that claim on appeal.

Judge Rushing concurred in the judgment, but could have applied plain error review.

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