Sanchez v. United States

Background

This order concerns Christian Sanchez’s criminal case and related post-conviction proceeding. The court had previously directed the parties to address whether it should conduct a full resentencing and whether section 403(b) of the First Step Act would apply. Section 403(b) eliminated the requirement that certain convictions under 18 U.S.C. § 924(c) be treated as “stacked” when they were obtained at the same trial.

Resentencing decision

The court declined to conduct a full resentencing. It acknowledged that it had discretion to vacate some or all sentences and conduct a new sentencing proceeding. The court explained that it had done so in other cases when the sentences operated as an interdependent package and vacating one sentence made the remaining sentence inadequate. Here, however, the court found that resentencing would have no practical effect on the amount of time Sanchez would serve.

The court stated that Sanchez faced a mandatory life-plus sentence regardless of how the sentences were treated: life plus 85 years if the court vacated only the conviction and sentence on Count 30, or life plus 40 years if it also resentenced Counts 36, 38, and 40 without stacking. The court therefore concluded that no purpose would be served by vacating the sentences on Counts 36, 38, and 40 and conducting another sentencing proceeding.

Disposition

The court vacated the conviction and sentence on Count 30 in accordance with its previous decision and directed that an amended judgment be entered. The order does not state that the court vacated or resentenced Counts 36, 38, or 40. The court also ruled that Sanchez had not made a substantial showing that a constitutional right was denied, so a certificate of appealability would not issue. Judge Seibel ordered the Clerk of Court to docket the order in both the criminal and civil case numbers.