Descamps

MEMORANDUM

Matthew Descamps was found guilty of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922 (g)(1). He had five previous felony convictions. The Armed Career Criminal Act (“ACCA”) requires a sentence of at least fifteen years if the defendant has three prior convictions for violent felonies. 18 U.S.C. § 924 (e)(1). The statute defines a violent felony as “any crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year ... that has as an element the ... threatened use of physical force against the person of another; or is burglary ____” § 924(e)(2). At sentencing, the district court concluded that Descamps had three predicate violent felonies — robbery, burglary, and felony harassment — and sentenced Descamps to 262 months in custody and five years of supervised release, under the ACCA. Descamps appeals his sentence.

Descamps first argues that all prior convictions that are used to enhance his sentence must be charged in the indictment and submitted to a jury for a finding beyond a reasonable doubt. The Supreme Court has held that prior convictions that increase a sentence beyond a statutory maximum do not have to be proven beyond a…