United States v. Vincent Packineau

Filing

PER CURIAM OPINION FILED - THE COURT: Roger L. Wollman, Morris S. Arnold and Diana E. Murphy (UNPUBLISHED) [4436564] [16-1045]

United States Court of Appeals
For the Eighth Circuit
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No. 16-1045
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United States of America
lllllllllllllllllllll Plaintiff - Appellee
v.
Vincent Packineau
lllllllllllllllllllll Defendant - Appellant
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Appeal from United States District Court
for the District of North Dakota - Bismarck
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Submitted: August 2, 2016
Filed: August 11, 2016
[Unpublished]
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Before WOLLMAN, ARNOLD, and MURPHY, Circuit Judges.
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PER CURIAM.
Federal prisoner Vincent Packineau directly appeals his sentence of 11 months
upon the revocation of his supervised release. At the revocation and sentencing
hearing, the district court indicated that the length of Packineau’s prison term was
chosen to optimize his mental health treatment while in custody. Packineau appeals
the district court's decision to extend his sentence to promote rehabilitation.

Appellate Case: 16-1045

Page: 1

Date Filed: 08/11/2016 Entry ID: 4436564

We review for plain error because Packineau failed to object to the district
court's reference to rehabilitation. United States v. Taylor, 679 F.3d 1005, 1007 (8th
Cir. 2012). On appeal, the parties agree that the district court committed plain error
under Tapia v. United States, 564 U.S. 319, 330–35 (2011) (federal court may not
impose or lengthen prison term to promote offender’s rehabilitation). The
government correctly notes that the district court "cannot be faulted for this error,"
because both parties referred to Packineau's mental health in their recommendations
to the court and Packineau personally requested that the court place him in a mental
health facility. Nonetheless, after careful review we conclude that Tapia requires
resentencing in this case. See Taylor, 679 F.3d at 1006–07 (Tapia applies upon
revocation of supervised release). Accordingly, we vacate Packineau’s revocation
sentence and remand the case for resentencing.
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Appellate Case: 16-1045

Page: 2

Date Filed: 08/11/2016 Entry ID: 4436564