United States v. Edward B. Johnson

For his role as the getaway driver in a bank robbery, Edward Johnson was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit bank robbery and one count of bank robbery. He was sentenced to 165 months in prison, well within the 240 months statutory maximum for the crimes of conviction. Drawing our attention to an array of errors, he appeals both the conviction and his sentence. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . We affirm his conviction, but vacate his sentence and remand for plenary resentencing.

I

On February 23, 2000, Johnson drove the getaway car in a carefully planned bank robbery, which was executed by accomplice co-defendants Charley Robinet and Marcus Timmons. During the week before the robbery, Johnson rented two cars, a Dodge Neon and a Lincoln Navigator. Robinet was with him when he rented the Navigator. The day before the crime, Johnson, Robinet, and Timmons left the smaller Neon in a parking lot several blocks from the bank they intended to rob. On the day of the robbery, they drove to that lot, parked the Navigator, and piled into the Neon. Johnson then drove the Neon to the rear of the bank, where he dropped off Robinet and Timmons, armed respectively…