United States of America v. Melroy Johnson, Sr.

United States Court of Appeals
For the Eighth Circuit
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No. 26-1143
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United States of America
lllllllllllllllllllllPlaintiff - Appellee
v.
Melroy Johnson, Sr.
lllllllllllllllllllllDefendant - Appellant
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Appeal from United States District Court
for the Northern District of Iowa - Western
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Submitted: July 1, 2026
Filed: July 7, 2026
[Unpublished]
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Before LAVENSKI R. SMITH, ERICKSON, and STRAS, Circuit Judges.
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PER CURIAM.
Melroy Johnson appeals the district court’s1 order denying his motion for a
sentence reduction or compassionate release under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A)(i). In
1The Honorable Leonard T. Strand, United States District Judge for the
Northern District of Iowa.

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his motion, Johnson argued that he was suffering from several serious health
conditions that were life-limiting and irreversible; that compassionate release was
warranted under U.S.S.G. § 1B1.13(b); and that he would not pose a danger to any
other person or the community. Following briefing, the district court reviewed
Johnson’s criminal proceedings, including its analysis of the 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)
factors at his original sentencing hearing; and, after reviewing Johnson’s medical
conditions, concluded that his documented combination of health conditions met the
criteria under section 1B1.13(b)(1)(A) for a serious and advanced illness with an
end-of-life trajectory, thus establishing extraordinary and compelling reasons for
sentence-reduction eligibility; but denied the motion upon concluding that the
section 3553(a) factors did not support Johnson’s early release, given that the
circumstances of his offenses and his criminal history were aggravating factors which
outweighed the mitigating factors. Finding no abuse of discretion, see United States
v. Fetters, 163 F.4th 513, 517 (8th Cir. 2026) (compassionate release can be denied
after balancing § 3553(a) factors because it is “discretionary, not mandatory”), we
affirm the judgment of the district court, and grant counsel’s motion for leave to
withdraw.
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