Fajardo

MEMORANDUM *

Fajardo pled guilty on April 11, 2005 to five counts of mail fraud. His scheme consisted of sending forged notices of traffic infractions to the public in the names of the Superior Court of California and the State of California. The letters included envelopes addressed to boxes owned by Fajardo, and instructed that payment should be made to “Process Center,” the name of an entity incorporated by Fajardo. Fajardo admitted mailing approximately forty letters; the investigation revealed that he had sent seventy-three letters. Seventeen recipients paid a total of $3,671. The seventy-three letters sought payment of $11,249.

The Probation Office calculated a total offense level of fourteen, including a three-level downward adjustment for acceptance of responsibility. Fajardo fell into Criminal History Category I, resulting in a Guidelines range of fifteen to twenty-one months. The Guidelines calculations are not disputed. Probation recommended a sentence of ten months, based on the discrepancy between actual and intended loss. The Government sought a fifteen month sentence.

Fajardo argued for sixth months of home detention, noting that the Guideline range based on…