United States v. Nobel J. Kelly

The government appeals Nobel Kelly’s 120-month sentence for possession with intent to distribute over 5 grams of cocaine base. The government contends that the district court erred in finding that Kelly’s 1998 Washington state conviction for attempting to elude a police vehicle was not a “crime of violence” under United States Sentencing Guideline (U.S.S.G.) § 4B1.2(a), and therefore not a predicate conviction for the career offender enhancement in U.S.S.G. § 4B1.1. We hold that Kelly’s conviction for attempting to elude a police vehicle is not a “crime of violence” within the meaning of U.S.S.G. § 4B1.2(a)(2), and we affirm the district court’s decision on that issue.

I

Kelly pled guilty to possession with intent to distribute over 5 grams of cocaine base in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841 (a)(1). The government and Kelly agreed that U.S.S.G. § 2Dl.l(c)(6) specifies a base offense level of 28 for possession with intent to distribute 21.1 grams of cocaine base, and that the base offense level would be increased by two levels under U.S.S.G. § 2Dl.l(b)(l) because Kelly possessed a firearm during the offense. The government and Kelly also agreed that the parties would be free to argue…