United States v. Hoffman

Hoffman had nude pictures of his girlfriend’s six-year-old daughter on his phone. Although the child testified about multiple instances of sexual conduct, Hoffman was convicted of one count of exploitation of a child and one count of possession of child pornography in interstate commerce, 18 U.S.C. 2251(a); 2252(a)(4)(B). While his sentence was pending, he was convicted in Indiana state court of sexual abuse of the same child over a period of 18 months, for which he faced up to 50 years in state prison. The federal district court applied the 18 U.S.C. 3553 factors and sentenced Hoffman to 300 months’ imprisonment, to be served consecutively to his state sentence, noting that the single count of production of child pornography carried a minimum mandatory sentence of 15 years, and that other aspects of the case demanded more. Hoffman was sentenced to a term of 50 years in state prison, based on his role as a father figure to the victim, his lack of remorse, and his history of committing rapes as a juvenile. The Seventh Circuit affirmed the federal sentence, citing the court’s discretion under U.S.S.G. 5G1.3 to impose a concurrent or consecutive sentence, or to decline to impose either, when a subsequent state sentence for relevant conduct is anticipated. View "United States v. Hoffman" on Justia Law