United States v. Jonathon Chase Vowels-Harper -Western District of Kentucky at Louisville
Split Score
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Case Summary
Disposition
Vacated
The Sixth Circuit vacated Jonathon Chase Vowels-Harper’s 226-month sentence for receiving child pornography because the district court misapplied the four-level “sadistic or masochistic conduct” enhancement in U.S.S.G. § 2G2.1(b)(4). Clarifying its own precedents, the court held that, for pubescent minors, penetration with a foreign object is not per se sadistic; instead, the sentencing judge must examine the specific depiction for objective signs of pain, humiliation, or suffering.
Circuit Split Identified
Legal Issue
Whether penetration of a pubescent minor with a foreign object is per se ‘sadistic’ under U.S.S.G. § 2G2.1(b)(4)(A) or requires a case-specific assessment of pain or humiliation.
Circuit Positions
Foreign-object penetration of a minor is categorically sadistic; enhancement applies per se.
No per se rule; sentencing court must conduct case-by-case, objective analysis of whether the depiction shows pain, humiliation, or suffering.
Conflict Summary
The Eighth Circuit treats any depiction of a minor’s penetration with a foreign object as automatically sadistic, triggering the four-level enhancement, while the Sixth, Fifth, and Seventh Circuits require a fact-bound, objective inquiry into whether the particular image depicts pain, humiliation, or suffering.