This is an appeal from an illegal reentry sentence after a prior deportation following a felony conviction (8 U.S.C. § 1326(a)). Here, the District Court imposed a sentence (72 months) roughly twice the Guidelines range of 30 to 37 months.
The Seventh Circuit held that the sentence was well within the statutory limits and was a reasonable exercise of the judge’s discretion under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) and United States v. Booker, 543 U.S. 220 (2005). The Court also held that the District judge also gave a sufficient explanation for the decision per Gall v. United States, 552 U.S. 38, 50 (2007).
The panel stated that this was based primarily on the defendant’s criminal history and the fact that a previous sentence of 57 months for the same crime had not deterred him.
The case is United States v. Vasquez-Abarca, No. 18-3716 (January 9).