US v. LaValley, 999 F. 2d 663 - Court of Appeals, 2nd Circuit 1993

Defendant-appellant Mark L. LaValley appeals from a judgment of conviction and sentence entered in the United States District Court for the District of Vermont (Billings, J.) following his plea of guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846, 841(a)(1) and 841(b)(1)(C) (1988). The district court found LaValley to be a steerer or a facilitator and for that reason rejected his claim that he was a minor participant in the offense. Accordingly, the district court denied LaValley\u27s application, made pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 3B1.2(b), for a two-level reduction in his base offense level. LaValley was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of fifteen months to be followed by a three-year term of supervised release. For the reasons that follow, the sentence is vacated, and the case is remanded to the district court for an assessment of LaValley\u27s role in the offense and for resentencing