SCOTUS To Decide Whether Court May Impose Sentence Below Revised Range in § 3582(c)(2) Resentencings

Speaking of sentence reductions pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2) based on the retroactive amendments to the crack guidelines, the Supreme Court in December granted cert on questions that have divided the circuits in this area. Dillon v. United States, No. 09-6338, presents the questions:

I. Whether the Federal Sentencing Guidelines are binding when a district court imposes a new sentence pursuant to a revised guideline range under 18 U.S.C. § 3582.

II. Whether during a § 3582(c)(2) sentencing, a district court is required to impose sentence based on an admittedly incorrectly calculated guideline range.

Stated colloquially, the first question is whether § 3582(c)(2) allows full "Booker" resentencings, complete with the ability to depart or vary below the reduced Guidelines range. As you know, the Fifth Circuit has held that the crack amendments bar any reduction below the revised Guidelines range.