United States of America v. Dennis Scott Kent

NOT RECOMMENDED FOR PUBLICATION
File Name: 19a0170n.06
No. 18-1273
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
DENNIS SCOTT KENT,
Defendant-Appellant.
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ON APPEAL FROM THE
UNITED STATES DISTRICT
COURT FOR THE WESTERN
DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN
BEFORE: GRIFFIN, KETHLEDGE, and THAPAR, Circuit Judges.
GRIFFIN, Circuit Judge.
Defendant Dennis Kent pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography in violation of
18 U.S.C. § 2252A. In addition to imposing a prison sentence, the district court ordered Kent to
pay a $5000 special assessment under the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015. 18 U.S.C.
§ 3014. Kent never objected to the assessment during sentencing, but he now argues that it doesn’t
apply to him because he is indigent.
Given Kent’s failure to raise his challenge to the district court, we review for plain error.
See United States v. Olano, 507 U.S. 725, 732 (1993). Under this standard, the district court must
have erred in a way that was clear or obvious; that affected Kent’s substantial rights; and that
affected the fairness, integrity, or public reputation of judicial proceedings. Id.

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No. 18-1273, United States v. Kent
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Section 3014 limits the special assessment’s application to “non-indigent person[s]”
convicted of certain crimes. See 18 U.S.C. § 3014(a). Kent argues that the assessment didn’t
apply to him because he was indigent—he had a monthly income of $1100 and a negative net
worth of over $100,000—and that the district court erred by not specifically assessing his financial
condition. But if the district court erred by failing to account for Kent’s meager income and
massive debt, the error was not plain. An error is plain only when binding case law makes it clear;
without such case law, there can be no plain error. United States v. Al-Maliki, 787 F.3d 784, 794
(6th Cir. 2015). And here, the meaning of “non-indigent person” under § 3014(a) is an issue of
first impression in our circuit, so no binding case law exists to render the error plain. That resolves
Kent’s appeal. We therefore affirm the imposition of the $5000 assessment under § 3014.

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