United States v. Sperberg (full
text)
U.S. Court of Appeals, 7th Circuit
United States v. Sperberg, 432 F.3d 706
Date: 12/19/05
Case No: 04-4135
Issue: Drunk driving as a "violent
felony"
Holding: Drunk driving is a "violent felony" for
purposes of the Armed Career Criminal ACT, 18 U.S.C. §924(e).
Summary:
Normally, the maximum penalty for possessing a firearm
despite a prior felony conviction is 10 years imprisonment. Under
the Armed Career Criminal Act, 18 U.S.C. §924(e), an offender with three previous
"violent felony" convictions shall be imprisoned for not less than
15 years. The district judge concluded that Sperberg had been
convicted of at least three other "violent felonies" and sentenced
him to 210 months (17.5 years) in prison. On appeal, Sperberg
argued that his felony conviction for driving while intoxicated
should not have been considered a "violent felony" for purposes of
the Armed Career Criminal Act. Specifically, Sperberg relied on
Leocal v. Ashcroft, 543 U.S. 1
(2004), in which the Supreme Court held that drunk driving is not a
"crime of violence" under
18 U.S.C. §16.
The 7th Circuit upheld Sperberg's sentence and
distinguished the case at bar from
Leocal. The Supreme Court interpreted
"crime of violence" to require the deliberate application of force
because
18 U.S.C. §16, refers to the "use" of force. In contrast,
"violent felony," as defined by
18 U.S.C. §924(e)(2)(B)(ii), refers to the potential risk of
physical injury to another, not whether the offender deliberately
applied force. Finally, the court reaffirmed its decision in
United States v. Rutherford, 54 F.3d 370
(7th Cir. 1995), that drunk driving poses serious risks to
others.