Each new year, we celebrate the opportunity to wipe the slate clean and begin again. This new year, the criminal defense attorneys at Joseph, Hollander & Craft are celebrating a client’s opportunity to do just that. Thanks to Christopher Joseph’s appellate advocacy, his client’s 10-year sentence has been vacated, and she has the opportunity to be resentenced to a lesser term.

In United States v. Johnson, Case No. 16-3280, Joseph challenged a 10-year mandatory minimum sentence imposed on his client, a low-level participant in a large drug conspiracy. Before the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, Joseph argued that Johnson’s Sixth Amendment rights were violated because the drug-quantity determination that triggered the mandatory minimum sentence was not submitted to the jury under a beyond-a-reasonable-doubt standard. A unanimous Tenth Circuit panel agreed. It entered an opinion reversing the district court, ordering that Johnson’s sentence be vacated, and instructing that Johnson be resentenced.

With the entry of this appellate decision on December 22, 2017, Ms. Johnson’s sentencing slate was wiped clean. At resentencing, the district court will not be restrained by a mandatory sentence; it will be free to impose a sentence better suited to Ms. Johnson’s unique circumstances. Congratulations to Ms. Johnson and Mr. Joseph for their appellate success!

If you or your loved one is facing a criminal charge or investigation or needs to appeal a criminal conviction or sentence, contact the criminal defense attorneys at Joseph, Hollander & Craft. With attorneys in Wichita (316-262-939), Topeka (785-234-3272), Lawrence (785-856-0143), and Overland Park (913-948-9490), we serve clients from the Oklahoma border to the Kansas City area.