United States v. Covington

The offense of unlawful wounding under West Virginia law is a crime of violence under Section 4B1.2 of the Sentencing Guidelines. The Fourth Circuit held that unlawful wounding is categorically a crime of violence under the force clause because it applies to a defendant who shoots, stabs, cuts, or wounds any person. Therefore, the statute's text dictates that the minimum conduct required for conviction of unlawful wounding must at least involve physical force capable of causing physical injury to another person. Because the district court concluded that unlawful wounding did not qualify as a crime of violence in this case, the court vacated defendant's sentence and remanded for resentencing. View "United States v. Covington" on Justia Law