In United States v. Cooper, 2005 WL 17968 (3d Cir. 1/5/05), the Third Circuit held that "good works," i.e., charitable contributions, though a discouraged factor under the federal sentencing guidelines, can be a valid justification for a downward departure at sentencing. Consequently, the Court affirmed a district court’s decision to downwardly depart four offense levels in a securities fraud and tax evasion case based upon defendant’s exceptional good works where defendant not only donated money to charity, but also made contributions of a personal nature, such as mentoring an underprivileged young man and aiding other young men in gaining an education. The majority opinion also addressed and applied the de novo standard of review under the PROTECT Act.
In a dissenting opinion, Judge Sloviter criticized the majority's application of the new standard of review. Judge Sloviter believed that a fair de novo review required reversal because the PROTECT Act was sought, in part, to discontinue the trend of leniency toward white collar criminals.
Case summaries and commentary on recently decided criminal law cases in the Third Circuit provided by Federal Defenders and CJA Panel Attorneys.
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Failure to group certain counts as required by the Sentencing Guidelines is plain error requiring resentencing even if the sentencing co...


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Section 18 U.S.C. §3147(1) provides that if a person is convicted of an offense while under pretrial release, then in addition to the senten...
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In United States v. Raul Rodriguez , Nos. 18-1606 and 18-1664 (3d Cir., May 1, 2019), Defendant pled guilty one count each of Hobbs Act ...
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In United States v. James, No. 18-2569 (June 27, 2019), the Court of Appeals, through an opinion by Judge Jordan, affirmed the denial of de...
