Helpful Case For Sentencing Departures

U.S. v. Christiansen, 2006 WL 1924432 (7/13/06)(unpub'd) - This may be a helpful case if you want to justify a modest decrease from the guideline range. In the course of upholding an upward criminal history departure, the 10th notes that, while an "extreme divergence" from the guidelines requires "dramatic facts," a "moderate" deviation requires only an "appropriate justification." The case also supports our typical argument that we're not asking for an "unwarranted" disparity from other defendants, but a warranted one. The 10th further notes that a criminal history departure is not really a sentence outside the guidelines because it is encouraged by the guidelines.