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Legislation and Regulation Keyed to Eskridge, 1st Ed.
Lockhart v. United States
Citation:
577 U.S. 347 (2016)Facts
In April 2000, Avondale Lockhart was convicted of sexual abuse in the first degree under New York law for a crime involving his then-53-year-old girlfriend. Eleven years later, Lockhart was indicted for attempting to receive and possessing child pornography in violation of federal law. He pleaded guilty to the possession offense. The government argued that Lockhart’s prior New York conviction triggered a 10-year mandatory minimum sentence under 18 U.S.C. § 2252(b)(2), which applies to defendants with prior convictions “relating to aggravated sexual abuse, sexual abuse, or abusive sexual conduct involving a minor or ward.” Lockhart objected, arguing that the phrase “involving a minor or ward” modified all three listed offenses, not just “abusive sexual conduct,” and therefore his prior conviction for sexual abuse of an adult did not qualify as a predicate offense. The District Court rejected Lockhart’s argument and applied the mandatory minimum sentence, and the Second Circuit affirmed.
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