US v. Von Brown

No. 04-30219 (8-8-05). The 9th holds that enhancing defendant to career offender sentencing status did not violate Blakely or Booker. The 9th rejected defendant's argument that the prior convictions had to be proved beyond a reasonable doubt, pointing to prior precedent and of course Apprendi. The 9th also held that the issue of whether the prior convictions were "crimes of violence" was not a jury one, but legal, and the court could decide under the modified Taylor approach. The case is remanded under Ameline.