United States v. Stephen Remy Mueller

CLIFTON, Circuit Judge.

The question presented in this case is whether the district court is authorized to order probation under the probation stat ute, 18 U.S.C. § 3561, for a defendant convicted of receiving child pornography in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2252, which provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of incarceration. Section 2252 establishes a mandatory minimum sentence of five years of incarceration but does not explicitly preclude probation. Probation is precluded for this conviction under the United States Sentencing Commission, Guidelines Manual (“U.S.S.G.” or “Sentencing…