United States v. Ulysses Williams

POSNER, Circuit Judge.

In 2004 the defendant pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine. Because of the amount of crack involved, his base offense level was 36. U.S.S.G. § 2D1.1(c)(2) (2004). The judge reduced the level to 33 because the defendant had accepted responsibility for his crime. His guidelines sentencing range, based on that offense level and a Category VI criminal history, was 235 to 293 months, and the judge sentenced him to the bottom figure. Because the defendant was a career offender, the judge was required, in the first instance, to calculate the guidelines…