Federal Judiciary

United States v. Butler, No. 08-CR-370 (JBW), 2010 WL 318087 (E.D.N.Y. Jan. 22, 2010)

Not the most auspicious beginning.  But the story has a "happy" ending.

The Government contended that Butler faced an advisory Guidelines range of life imprisonment, and a statutory maximum of 45 years.  It requested a sentence of at least 15 years, and restitution of approximately $1.1 billion.  The Court didn't buy the Government's argument.  Instead, the district court found (working with an advisory panel of other judges and a sentencing expert from the Probation Department) that the losses associated with Butler's offense were "impossible to determine."  Accordingly, it calculated his advisory Guidelines offense level based on the amount of proven gain resulting from his offense.  Bottom line, the district court determined that Butler faced an advisory Guidelines range of imprisonment of between 87 and 108, and then sentenced him to 60 months imprisonment.  More specifically, it found that:

The district court then imposed the non-Guidelines sentence for two primary reasons (other than its conclusions concerning loss).  First, "defendant's young child and loving wife suggest the desirability of defendant's early presence at home, working and supporting his family economically and psychologically."  Second, "a strong supportive network of extended family, friends, teachers, and potential employers, as well as defendant's positive reaction to supervision since his arrest, indicate a high probability of rehabilitation."