USCA11 Case: 20-13876 Date Filed: 04/27/2021 Page: 1 of 7
[DO NOT PUBLISH]
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
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No. 20-13876
Non-Argument Calendar
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D.C. Docket No. 0:10-cr-60284-WPD-1
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
versus
WILLIAM LANIER,
a.k.a. Red,
Defendant-Appellant.
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Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Southern District of Florida
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(April 27, 2021)
Before JORDAN, JILL PRYOR and GRANT, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:
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William Lanier appeals the denial of his motion for a sentence reduction
under § 404(b) of the First Step Act, following a remand from this Court. Lanier
argues that on remand the district court abused its discretion. After thorough
review, we affirm.
I.
Lanier pled guilty to two counts of possessing with intent to distribute five
grams of more of crack cocaine. See 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1). In the plea agreement,
he stipulated that the drug-quantity amount used to calculate his base offense level
at sentencing would be 113.5 grams of crack cocaine. Because the indictment
alleged that each count involved five grams or more of crack cocaine, Lanier faced
a statutory penalty range of between five and 40 years’ imprisonment on each
count.
At the sentencing hearing, the district court determined that Lanier qualified
as career offender for purposes of the sentencing guidelines, see U.S.S.G.
§ 4B1.1(a), and calculated his guidelines range as 188 to 235 months’
imprisonment. Lanier sought a significant downward variance, arguing that the
sentencing factors set forth in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) supported a shorter sentence.1
1
Section § 3553(a) states that a court should “impose a sentence sufficient, but not
greater than necessary” to reflect the seriousness of the offense, promote respect for the law,
provide just punishment for the offense, afford adequate deterrence to criminal conduct, protect
the public from further crimes of the defendant, and provide the defendant with needed
educational or vocational training. 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)(2). In imposing a sentence, a court also
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The government opposed the request for a variance, arguing that the § 3553(a)
factors, including the need to protect the public from further crimes of the
defendant, warranted a sentence within the guidelines range. To support its
position, the government pointed out that Lanier had 39 arrests, 11 felony
convictions, and 32 misdemeanor convictions.
Citing the need to protect the public from further criminal activity, the need
to promote respect for the law, and the need to afford adequate deterrence, the
court denied Lanier’s request for a downward variance and imposed a sentence of
188 months. Lanier appealed his sentence, and we affirmed. See United States v.
Lanier (Lanier I), 445 F. App’x 337 (11th Cir. 2011) (unpublished).
In 2019, Lanier filed a motion for a sentence reduction. He sought the
reduction under the First Step Act of 2018, which gave district courts the discretion
to reduce the sentences of certain individuals with convictions for crack-cocaine
offenses. See Pub. L. No. 115-391 § 404, 132 Stat. 5194, 5222 (2018). He argued
that he was eligible for a sentence reduction under the First Step Act and urged the
court to exercise its discretion to award him a reduction based on the § 3553(a)
factors and evidence showing that he had been rehabilitated while in prison. The
should consider: the nature and circumstances of the offense, the history and characteristics of
the defendant, the kinds of sentences available, the sentencing range established under the
guidelines, any pertinent policy statement issued by the Sentencing Commission, the need to
avoid unwarranted sentencing disparities, and the need to provide restitution to victims. Id.
§ 3553(a)(1), (3)–(7).
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government opposed Lanier’s request for a sentence reduction, arguing that he was
ineligible under the First Step Act. The district court agreed with the government
and denied the motion. 2
On appeal, we vacated the district court’s order, holding that the district
court had erred in concluding that Lanier was ineligible for a sentence reduction.
United States v. Lanier (Lanier II), 826 F. App’x 791 (11th Cir. 2020)
(unpublished). We remanded so that the district court could determine whether “to
exercise its discretion” to award Lanier a sentence reduction. Id. at 797.
On remand, the district court again denied Lanier’s motion for a sentence
reduction. The court explained that Lanier had a covered offense and was eligible
for a sentence reduction. But after considering the guidelines range and the
§ 3553(a) factors, the court decided not to reduce Lanier’s sentence. It explained
that Lanier had a lengthy criminal history, which included 11 prior felony
convictions, and found that his 188-month sentence was “necessary to promote
respect for the law and act as a deterrent.” Doc. 150 at 3.3 In reaching this
conclusion, the court noted that it had presided over Lanier’s criminal case and had
considered Lanier’s motion for a sentence reduction, the government’s response,
2
After the court denied the motion, Lanier filed a motion for reconsideration. The court
denied the motion for reconsideration on the same ground, that Lanier was ineligible for a
reduction under the First Step Act.
3
“Doc.” numbers refer to the district court’s docket entries.
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and the record in the case including the pre-sentence investigation report that the
probation office had prepared. Lanier again appeals.
II.
We review for an abuse of discretion a district court’s denial of an eligible
movant’s request for a reduced sentence under the First Step Act. United States v.
Jones, 962 F.3d 1290, 1296 (11th Cir. 2020). “A district court abuses its discretion
if it applies an incorrect legal standard, applies the law in an unreasonable or
incorrect manner, follows improper procedures in making a determination, or
makes findings of fact that are clearly erroneous.” Diveroli v. United States,
803 F.3d 1258, 1262 (11th Cir. 2015) (internal quotation marks omitted).
III.
Although we held in Lanier II that the district court had the authority to
reduce Lanier’s sentence, “it was not required to do so” and had “wide latitude” to
determine whether to exercise its discretion to reduce the sentence. Jones,
962 F.3d at 1304. Lanier argues that the district court abused its discretion when it
denied him a sentence reduction because it applied the “3553(a) factors in an
unreasonable manner” when it failed to “fully consider” his “history and
characteristics.” Appellant’s Br. at 7, 9.
Although district courts are required to consider the § 3553(a) factors at an
initial sentencing, see Chavez-Meza v. United States, 138 S. Ct. 1959, 1963 (2018),
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we have not decided whether a district court must consider them when deciding
whether to reduce an eligible movant’s sentence under the First Step Act, see
United States v. Russell, No. 19-12717, __ F.3d __, 2021 WL 1418288, at *6 (11th
Cir. Apr. 15, 2021); Jones, 962 F.3d at 1304. We need not decide this question to
resolve this appeal because even assuming the district court was required to look to
the § 3553(a) factors, we cannot say that the district court abused its discretion
here.
To the extent that Lanier is arguing that the district court failed to adequately
consider the § 3553(a) factors, his argument fails. When a district court is required
to consider the § 3553(a) factors, it is not necessary for the district court to state on
the record that it has considered each of the § 3553(a) factors or to discuss each
§ 3553(a) factor, so long as the record demonstrates that the district court took into
account the “pertinent factors.” United States v. Eggersdorf, 126 F.3d 1318, 1322
(11th Cir. 1997); see United States v. Kuhlman, 711 F.3d 1321, 1327–28 (11th Cir.
2013).
The record here reflects that the district court appropriately considered the
§ 3553(a) factors. It’s true that in its order, the district court did not discuss or
mention each § 3553(a) factor and did not directly address Lanier’s history and
characteristics. But the court stated that it considered Lanier’s motion for a
sentence reduction in which he relied on the § 3553(a) factors to argue that he
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should receive a sentence reduction based on his post-sentencing rehabilitation.
And the court not only explained that it had considered the § 3553(a) factors, it
also discussed several specific § 3553(a) factors, including the need to promote
respect for the law, the need for deterrence, and the applicable guidelines range.
See 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)(2)(A)–(B), (a)(4). Viewed as a whole, the record reflects
that the district court adequately considered the § 3553(a) factors. See United
States v. Dorman, 488 F.3d 936, 944 (11th Cir. 2007) (concluding that district
court adequately considered the § 3553(a) factors when the substance of its
decision showed that it had considered several of the factors); Eggersdorf,
126 F.3d at 1322.
To the extent Lanier argues the district court erred in weighing the § 3553(a)
factors because it should have given greater weight to his history and
characteristics, including his post-sentencing rehabilitation, and less weight to
other factors, such as the need to promote respect for the law and the need to afford
adequate deterrence, his challenge also fails. We cannot say that the district
abused its considerable discretion in deciding how to weight the § 3553(a) factors.
See United States v. Croteau, 819 F.3d 1293, 1309 (11th Cir. 2016).
AFFIRMED.
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