Law Office of Jeremy Gordon Celebrates Successful 3582 Motion

We are pleased to report that one of our 3582 "compassionate release" motions were granted for a person who had "stacked 924c" offenses.

Hudec's Original Sentence

Darrell Hudec was originally sentenced to 480 months in federal prison for several offenses.  His sentence included 300 months for firearms offenses under 924(c).  At the time Hudec was sentenced under the pre-FIRST STEP ACT provisions for firearms, meaning that he was serving 60 months for one 924(c) case and 240 months for the second 924(c) case, to be served consecutively.

Hudec's Original Motion and the Court's Ruling

Hudec filed a motion for relief indicating that if Hudec was sentenced today he would not be subject to the harsh mandatory minimums of the pre-FIRST STEP ACT 924 statute.  Rather, he would be subject to a 5 year mandatory minimum for each 924(c) offense to be ran consecutively. Hudec claimed that was an extraordinary and compelling reason to grant reduction.  The court originally disagreed, holding that the applicable sentencing mandatory minimum was binding even though it had not been changed since the passing of the FIRST STEP ACT. Because the guideline as written did not include the change in the mandatory minimum after the FIRST STEP Act, Hudec's motion was denied.

The Fifth Circuit's Holding in Shkambi Gives Hudec a Second Chance

Later, in United States vs. Shkambi, the Fifth Circuit held that the Sentencing Guideline for extraordinary and compelling circumstances in a compassionate release was not binding on motions that were filed by defendants.  This meant that Hudec's motion could go forward as the difference in sentences before the FIRST STEP ACT and after the Act could be considered an extraordinary and compelling reason.  The court indicated that it was compelled to "reconsider its prior decision" and ordered subsequent briefing.

Our office filed a renewed motion that indicated that Hudec met all applicable criteria for release. We included his class report and his most recent PATTERN result sheet indicating that he would be highly unlikely to engage in recidivism.

Ultimately the judge agreed that Hudec should receive a reduction in sentence and reduced his amount of time to properly reflect the impact of the FIRST STEP Act. See United States vs Hudec, Case 4:91-cr-00001 (S.D. Tex).