United States Tenth Circuit

Defendant's drug sentence is affirmed, where the District Court lacked authority to sentence him to less than the minimum of the amended guideline range, because the Sentencing Commission's policy statements neither take away from its ability to define and limit its own policy statements under 18 U.S.C. section 994, nor undercut the binding effect of U.S.S.G. section 1B1.10.

Appellate Information

• Decided 08/04/2009
• Published 08/04/2009

Judges

• McKAY, Circuit Judge., Before HARTZ, HOLLOWAY, and McKAY, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Tenth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• David E. Johnson, Research and Writing Specialist (Edward R. Harris, Assistant Federal Public Defender, and Raymond P. Moore, Federal Public Defender, with him on the briefs), Denver, CO, for Defendant-Appellant., Andrew A. Vogt, Assistant United States Attorney (Troy A. Eid, United States Attorney, with him on the briefs), Denver, CO, for Plaintiff-Appellee.