AMENDMENT 66
Amendment: Chapter Two, Part D is amended by deleting §2D1.5 in its entirety as follows:
"§2D1.5. Continuing Criminal Enterprise
(a) Base Offense Level:
(1) 32, for the first conviction of engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise; or
(2) 38, for the second or any subsequent conviction of engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise; or
(3) 43, for engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise as the principal administrator, leader, or organizer, if either the amount of drugs involved was 30 times the minimum in the first paragraph (i.e., the text corresponding to Level 36) of the Drug Quantity Table or 300 times the minimum in the third paragraph (i.e., the text corresponding to Level 32), or the principal received $10 million in gross receipts for any twelve-month period.
Commentary
Statutory Provision: 21 U.S.C. § 848.
Application Note:
1. Do not apply any adjustment from Chapter Three, Part B (Role in the Offense).
Background: The base offense levels for continuing criminal enterprises are mandatory minimum sentences provided by the statute that mandate imprisonment for leaders of large scale drug enterprises. A conviction establishes that the defendant controlled and exercised decision-making authority over one of the most serious forms of ongoing criminal activity. Therefore, an adjustment for role in the offense in Chapter Three, Part B, is not applicable.".
A replacement guideline with accompanying commentary is inserted as §2D1.5 (Continuing Criminal Enterprise).
Reason for Amendment: The purpose of this amendment is to ensure that the guideline adequately reflects the seriousness of the criminal conduct. The previous guideline specified sentences that were lower than sentences typically imposed on defendants convicted of engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, a result that the Commission did not intend. The guideline is also amended to delete, as unnecessary, provisions that referred to statutory minimum sentences.
Effective Date: The effective date of this amendment is October 15, 1988.