United States v. Tanya Morris

MEMORANDUM

Tanya Brazier Morris pled guilty to one count of theft of government property in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 641 for filing a fraudulent Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) relief application in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. The district court calculated the recommended United States Sentencing Guidelines range as 24 to 30 months, but elected to depart upward. The court imposed a sentence of 37 months and restitution in the amount of $32,738.46. It also imposed a number of supervised release conditions, including several conditions authorizing the search and seizure of computers and computer-related devices used or owned by Morris. Morris appeals, arguing that the district court committed numerous procedural and substantive errors. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and we affirm.

Morris argues that the district court erred by including in the loss calculation for sentencing and restitution purposes a fraudulent disaster relief loan application filed by her mother with the Small Business Administration (SBA). The district court did not abuse its discretion by including the SBA fraud as “relevant conduct” under U.S.S.G. § 1B1.3(a)(1) when it calculated…