USA v. Etheridge et al

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff,
v.
JENNIFER BRANSON,
Defendant.
Case No. 3:21-CR-30164-NJR-2
ORDER
ROSENSTENGEL, District Judge:
Pending before the Court is a Motion for Sentence Reduction pursuant to 18 U.S.C.
§ 3582(c)(2) and Part A of Amendment 821 filed by Defendant Jennifer Branson. (Doc. 54).
The Court appointed the Federal Public Defender to represent Ms. Branson in connection
with the motion, and attorney Kim Freter filed an appearance. (Docs. 176, 178). Attorney
Freter now has moved to withdraw after concluding that Ms. Branson is ineligible for
relief. (Doc. 194). Ms. Branson was invited to respond to the motion to withdraw but has
not done so.
Under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c), a district court “may not modify a term of imprisonment
once it has been imposed” unless an exception applies. See Dillon v. United States, 560 U.S.
817, 819 (2010). One of those exceptions is for “a defendant who has been sentenced to a
term of imprisonment based on a sentencing range that has subsequently been lowered
by the Sentencing Commission.” 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2).
With Part A of Amendment 821, the Sentencing Commission altered the number
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of “status points” imposed for having committed an offense while under a criminal
justice sentence. U.S.S.G. § 4A1.1(e). Under the amended provision, a defendant who has
seven or more criminal history points and who committed the offense of conviction while
under any criminal justice sentence receives one status point. A defendant who has six or
fewer criminal history points and who committed the offense of conviction while under
any criminal justice sentence receives no status points. The Sentencing Commission made
the amendment apply retroactively. See U.S.S.G. § 1B1.10(d).
On August 18, 2022, Ms. Branson pleaded guilty to Counts 1, 2, and 4 of a
superseding indictment that charged her with several controlled substance offenses. The
Court sentenced her to a term of 72 months, consisting of 60 months each as to Counts 1
and 2, to run concurrently with each other, and 12 months as to Count 4, to run
consecutively to Counts 1 and 2. (Doc. 99). As part of the Guidelines computation, Ms.
Branson received two status points for committing the instant offenses, while serving a
term of probation. (Doc. 101 p. 12). This resulted in a criminal history score of three, so
Branson fell within Criminal History Category II. (Id. at p. 18). Coupled with her total
offense level of 29, her guideline range was 97-121 months on counts 1 and 2, to be
followed by a consecutive 8-14 months on Count 4. After grouping, her Guideline range
was 105-135 months. Under the revised U.S.S.G. § 4A1.1(e), Ms. Branson would now be
assessed only one status point, placing her in Criminal History Category I. As Attorney
Freter explains in her motion to withdraw, this results in a final Guideline range of 87-
108 months on Counts 1 and 2, and 95-125 months when accounting for the consecutive
term required on Count 4.
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Branson’s sentence of 72 months falls below the amended Guideline range.
“[A] prison sentence under § 3582(c)(2) may not be reduced to a length shorter than the
minimum of the revised guidelines range.” United States v. Crittendon, No. 24-1830, 2024
WL 4635059, at *1 (7th Cir. Oct. 31, 2024) (citing U.S.S.G. § 1B1.10(b)(2)(A)); see also Dillon,
560 U.S. at 826-27. Ms. Branson therefore is ineligible for a sentence reduction, so her
motion must be denied.
For these reasons, the Motion for Sentence Reduction pursuant to 18 U.S.C.
§ 3582(c)(2) and Amendment 821 filed by Defendant Jennifer Branson (Doc. 174) is
DENIED, and Attorney Freter’s Motion to Withdraw (Doc. 194) is GRANTED.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
DATED: 	February 10, 2026
____________________________
NANCY J. ROSENSTENGEL
United States District Judge
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