United States v. Ladonna M. Riggins

A jury convicted Ladonna Riggins (“Rig-gins”) of assault with a dangerous weapon and misdemeanor assault by striking, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 113 (e) and (d). Riggins was sentenced to 24 months of incarceration after the district court adjusted her base offense level and departed downward five levels.

Riggins appeals her conviction under 18 U.S.C. § 113 (e) on the ground that the belt and shoe used cannot be dangerous weapons under the facts of this case. She appeals her sentence on the ground that because the district court erroneously believed it lacked the discretion to do so, it failed to depart downward further than it did.

We reject Riggins’s arguments and affirm her conviction and sentence.

I

Facts

On January 8, 1993, Riggins beat her two-year-old son Paul Norris (“Paul”) with a belt and shoe. She then removed Paul from her home at Pearl Harbor-Naval Base, and called base security, reporting that her husband had beaten Paul. (The day after the beating, Riggins called the police and confessed that it was she who had beaten Paul.)

Paul was taken to Makalapa Naval Medical Clinic for a medical examination. The medical examination revealed welts and bruising over his…