Burgess v. United States

Keith Lavon Burges v United States
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued March 24, 2008 Decided April 16, 2008
Full case name	Burgess v United States
Citations	553 U.S. 124 (more) 128 S.Ct. 1572; 170 L. Ed. 2d 478; 2008 U.S. LEXIS 3475
Case history
Prior	Appeals court affirmed conviction, 478 F.3d 658 (4th Cir. 2007).
Holding
States classification of a drug offense as misdemeanor, that was punishable by more than 1 year in jail was classified as a felony drug offense under federal law.
Court membership
Chief Justice John Roberts Associate Justices John P. Stevens · Antonin Scalia Anthony Kennedy · David Souter Clarence Thomas · Ruth Bader Ginsburg Stephen Breyer · Samuel Alito
Case opinion
Majority	Ginsburg, joined by unanimous
Laws applied
21 U.S.C. 841

Burgess v. United States, 553 U.S. 124 (2008), was a United States Supreme Court case concerning the interpretation of the words "federal drug offense" in the Controlled Substances Act.[1]

Background

Keith Lavon Burgess was convicted in a South Carolina state court for cocaine possession.[2] Although the maximum sentence under state law was two years, South Carolina classified the offense as a misdemeanor, rather than a felony.[3] At a later proceeding, Burgess pleaded guilty for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of cocaine in Federal Court.[4] At his sentencing, the judge applied to Burgess the "prior conviction" statute, which required a minimum twenty-year sentence for anyone with a prior "felony drug conviction."[5] In Burgess' appeal to the Court he maintained that since South Carolina considered his first offense a misdemeanor, the "prior felony drug conviction" did not apply.[6]

Opinion of the Court

In a unanimous opinion written by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the Supreme Court rejected Burgess' appeal, holding that "felony" refers to any offense that is punishable for more than a year even if another jurisdiction classifies the offense as a misdemeanor.[7]

See also

• Lopez v. Gonzales: state felony conviction that would be a federal misdemeanor
• List of United States Supreme Court cases
• Lists of United States Supreme Court cases by volume
• List of United States Supreme Court cases by the Roberts Court

References

1. Burgess v. United States, 553 U.S. 124, 126-27 (2008).
2. Burgess, 553 U.S. at 127 (citing S. C. Code Ann. § 44–53–370(c) and (d)(1) (2002 and Supp. 2007)).
3. Burgess, 553 U.S. at 127 (citing § 44–53–370(d)(1)).
4. Burgess, 553 U.S. at 127.
5. Burgess, 553 U.S. at 128 ("The court granted the motion and sentenced Burgess to 156 months' imprisonment followed by ten years' supervised release.").
6. Burgess, 553 U.S. at 128.
7. Burgess, 553 U.S. at 134, 136.

External links

• Text of Burgess v. United States, 553 U.S. 124 (2008) is available from: Cornell CourtListener Google Scholar Justia Oyez (oral argument audio) Google Scholar