United States v. William Phillip Cuff

William P. Cuff, Jr. appeals his sentence imposed under the United States Sentencing Guidelines following a plea of guilty to theft of mail by a postal employee in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1709 . Cuff contends that the district court erred by adjusting his base offense level upward pursuant to Guidelines § 3B1.3 for abuse of trust. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . We vacate the sentence and remand for resentencing.

Cuff stole a mail pouch containing $164,000 of Federal Reserve Notes while he was employed by the Postal Service to unload mail at a post office loading dock. He contends that an upward adjustment of his sentence for abuse of trust is not appropriate because he was not in “a position of public or private trust” within the meaning of U.S.S.G. § 3B1.3. We agree.

The Sentencing Guidelines provide for a two-level enhancement if the defendant has “abused a position of public or private trust, or used a special skill, in a manner that significantly facilitated the commission or concealment of the offense.” U.S.S.G. § 3B1.3. “The position of trust must have contributed in some substantial way to facilitating the crime and not merely have provided an opportunity…