United States v. James Hughes Cheape, John Wade Johnson, Karen Klinefelter. Appeal of Karen Klinefelter

OPINION OF THE COURT

BECKER, Circuit Judge.

Section 5K2.12 of the Sentencing Guidelines provides that the sentencing court may depart below the applicable guideline range if the defendant committed the offense because of serious coercion or duress, under circumstances not amounting to a complete defense. In this case, defendant Karen Klinefelter was convicted by a jury in the district court for the Western District of Pennsylvania of bank robbery, 709 F.Supp. 653 (1989), see 18 U.S.C. § 2113(a), and bank robbery by use of a dangerous weapon, see id. § 2113(d), despite her defense that she…