United States v. Fernando Godinez

Summary

The Seventh Circuit held that the district court plainly erred in applying a ten-year mandatory minimum sentence under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(B) based on the defendant’s prior Ohio conviction for cocaine possession. Applying the First Step Act of 2018, the court concluded that the prior conviction did not necessarily entail possession with intent to manufacture or distribute a controlled substance and therefore did not qualify as a serious drug offense. The court vacated the judgment and remanded for resentencing.

Holdings

1. The relevant First Step Act amendments applied to Godinez because his offense predated enactment and his sentence had not been imposed when the Act became effective.
2. A state offense qualifies as a serious drug offense only when the conduct prohibited by the offense necessarily entails manufacturing, distributing, or possessing with intent to manufacture or distribute a controlled substance; an offense need not expressly include the conduct as a formal element, but a mere permissive inference is insufficient.
3. Godinez's Ohio conviction for possession of cocaine under Ohio Revised Code § 2925.11 was not a serious drug offense under § 924(e)(2)(A)(ii) because the Ohio possession statute did not necessarily entail intent to manufacture or distribute cocaine.
4. The district court plainly erred by using a ten-year mandatory minimum instead of a five-year mandatory minimum, and the error affected Godinez's substantial rights and the fairness of the proceedings, requiring resentencing.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the First Step Act applied to Godinez because it was enacted after his plea agreement but before sentencing.
2. Whether Godinez's prior Ohio conviction for possession of cocaine was a serious drug offense under 18 U.S.C. § 924(e)(2)(A)(ii), and therefore a serious drug felony triggering the enhanced mandatory minimum under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(B).
3. Whether the district court's use of the incorrect ten-year mandatory minimum constituted plain error warranting resentencing.

Disposition

vacated