Appellate Case: 21-6061 Document: 010110736006 Date Filed: 09/08/2022 Page: 1 FILED United States Court of Appeals PUBLISH Tenth Circuit UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS September 8, 2022 Christopher M. Wolpert FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT Clerk of Court _________________________________ UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. No. 21-6061 GREGORY YARNELL WILLIAMS, Defendant - Appellant. _________________________________ Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma (D.C. No. 5:20-CR-00149-PRW-1) _________________________________ Laura K. Deskin, Research & Writing Specialist (Susan M. Otto, Federal Public Defender, with her on the briefs), Office of the Federal Public Defender, Western District of Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for Defendant-Appellant Jason M. Harley, Assistant United States Attorney (Robert J. Troester, United States Attorney with him on the brief), Office of the United States Attorney, Western District of Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for Plaintiff-Appellee. _________________________________ Before TYMKOVICH, Chief Judge, BALDOCK and ROSSMAN, Circuit Judges. _________________________________ ROSSMAN, Circuit Judge. _________________________________ Gregory Yarnell Williams appeals his sentence after pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841 and being a felon in possession of a firearm in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g). He Appellate Case: 21-6061 Document: 010110736006 Date Filed: 09/08/2022 Page: 2 raises two claims of error. First, Mr. Williams contends his sentence is procedurally unreasonable because the district court incorrectly calculated his base offense level under the advisory Sentencing Guidelines. Mr. Williams claims the district court clearly erred in its drug-quantity calculation by holding him accountable for alleged packages of methamphetamine on which the government presented no evidence. Second, he asserts the district court imposed an illegal sentence by erroneously applying the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA) enhancement. According to Mr. Williams, his prior Oklahoma convictions for distributing a controlled dangerous substance were not categorically “serious drug offenses” under 18 U.S.C. § 924(e)(2)(A)(ii) because his state offenses applied to hemp, and hemp was not a federally controlled substance at the time of his federal offense. We agree with Mr. Williams on both issues. We vacate the judgment and remand for resentencing. I. Background A. Factual Background In May 2020, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) flagged a Priority Mail Express package addressed to 104 SE 39th Street in Oklahoma City. USPIS identified the package as suspicious because it was shipped from San Bernardino, California, a known source area of controlled substances, and the sender/recipient names were not associated with the listed addresses. Investigators from USPIS provided surveillance as the package was delivered to the 39th Street address. They 2 Appellate Case: 21-6061 Document: 010110736006 Date Filed: 09/08/2022 Page: 3 observed a man later identified as Mr. Williams pick up the package and leave the residence in an SUV about 40 minutes later. On June 2, 2020, investigators intercepted another suspicious Priority Mail Express package mailed from San Bernardino to the 39th Street address. A drug dog indicated the package contained narcotics. After obtaining a search warrant, investigators opened the package, found suspected methamphetamine in vacuum- sealed bundles, and …
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