RECOMMENDED FOR FULL-TEXT PUBLICATION Pursuant to Sixth Circuit I.O.P. 32.1(b) File Name: 19a0141p.06 UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, ┐ Plaintiff-Appellee, │ │ > No. 18-5978 v. │ │ │ SCOTT W. SULIK, │ Defendant-Appellant. │ ┘ Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky at Lexington. No. 5:18-cr-00019-1—Danny C. Reeves, District Judge. Decided and Filed: July 3, 2019 Before: BOGGS, MOORE, and STRANCH, Circuit Judges. _________________ COUNSEL ON BRIEF: Kevin M. Schad, FEDERAL PUBLIC DEFENDER, Cincinnati, Ohio, for Appellant. Charles P. Wisdom, Jr., Andrew T. Boone, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY’S OFFICE, Lexington, Kentucky, for Appellee. _________________ OPINION _________________ JANE B. STRANCH, Circuit Judge. Scott Sulik pleaded guilty to cyberstalking after he sent threatening emails to a member of the United States Congress. The only question his appeal presents is whether his crime was motivated by the victim’s status as a government officer, thereby triggering a six-level enhancement under United States Sentencing Guideline (USSG) § 3A1.2. Because the district court did not clearly err in concluding that it was, we AFFIRM. No. 18-5978 United States v. Sulik Page 2 In September 2017, a member of the House of Representatives made a public statement calling General John Kelly, then serving as White House Chief of Staff, a “disgrace to the uniform he used to wear.” The statement was made in the context of an ongoing debate about federal immigration policy. In national news coverage of the interaction, the Representative highlighted what he considered General Kelly’s unprincipled stance regarding the “dreamers,” immigrants brought to this country as children. Media commentators pointed out that the Representative had never served in the military, while General Kelly had both served and lost a son in Afghanistan. When Sulik learned about the comment, he sent the Representative a series of threatening emails. He wrote, for example, “You put your family at risk,” “Marines are loyal to their Generals, not low life parasite politicians like you,” and “What are you going to do before I erase you?” He later admitted that he intended to harass and intimidate the Representative and pleaded guilty to one count of cyberstalking, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2261A(2). In the plea agreement, Sulik reserved the right to object to a proposed six-level enhancement for a crime “motivated by” the victim’s status as a government officer. See USSG § 3A1.2(a)–(b). At sentencing, he did so, arguing that he was “a former Marine . . . outraged about a statement about a former Marine who had lost a son,” and that it did not matter “who had made the statement.” During his allocution, Sulik explained that he “would die for [his] country and for any fellow Marine.” He added: I’m regretful of the whole situation that—you know, Kelly lost his son, and I always say a prayer for any fallen soldiers, and I take it to heart. And I’m disappointed that there are people in government who don’t feel the same way ...
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