Justia U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

Appellant pled guilty to wire fraud and was sentenced to 108 months imprisonment. Appellant argued that his son, who suffered from muscular dystrophy, required around-the-clock care that his wife could not provide by herself. At issue was whether the district court, in consideration of appellant's caretaker duties, erred in denying his request for a downward departure under U.S.S.G. 5H1.6, failed to properly consider the 18 U.S.C. 3553(a) factors, and imposed an unreasonable sentence by declining to vary below the Guidelines range. The court held that the district court correctly explained at sentencing that family circumstances were not a factor ordinarily considered when sentencing a defendant under the Guidelines. The court also held that the district court clearly considered appellant's son's medical condition and appellant's role as a caretaker as relevant factors under section 3553(a). The court further held that the sentence was not substantively unreasonable where the district court thoroughly considered appellant's role in caring for his son and therefore, affirmed the sentence.

Appellant petitioned for his son's transfer to Israel for custody adjudication alleging that his son had been wrongfully detained in Iowa by the child's mother. At issue was whether the district court erred in finding that the parties' intention was to make Iowa the habitual residence where the district court emphasized the son's perspective that the settled purpose of his relocation to Iowa was to reside there habitually. The court held that the district court did not err in finding that the parties' intent at the time of the move was to make Iowa the son's habitual residence whether the district court emphasized the son's perspective or the parents' perspectives; that the parties maintained no home in Israel after coming to Iowa and appellant spent two months closing down his business before rejoining his family in the United States; that it appeared that the family did intend to "abandon" Israel; and any agreement of the pair to return to Israel would have involved staying in the United States for the indefinite amount of time it would take the mother to finish her doctorate.