Amended Administrative Order 23-07 in re Retroactive Application — USA v. Hopkins (Dkt. 48, N.D. Ga.)

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Administrative Order No. 23-07, First Amendment, Document 48, filed 11/20/23 in the Northern District of Georgia, on retroactive application of Amendment 821 of the Sentencing Guidelines related to U.S.S.G. §§ 4A1.1(e) and 4C1.1. It follows a joint proposal from the United States Attorney's Office, the Federal Defender Program, Inc., and the United States Probation Office. The order appoints the Federal Defender Program to review each defendant on the Sentencing Commission's list and every defendant who files a pro se motion for a reduction in sentence under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2). It says no defendant may be released under Amendment 821 until February 1, 2024, and stays all such motions until then. Review is to be prioritized by release date, beginning with defendants projected for release in 2024.

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INRE: 
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA 
FILED IN CLERK'S OFFICE 
U.S.D.C. Allanla 
NOV - 2 2023 
KEVIN P WEIMER, Clerk 
By:)(.~ 
DeputyClerk 
RETROACTIVE APPLICATION OF 
AMENDMENT 821 OF THE SENTENCING 
GUIDELINES RELATED TO U.S.S.G. 
ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER 
§§ 4Al.l(e) AND 4Cl.1 
NO. 23-07 
First Amendment 
UPON CONSIDERATION of a joint proposal submitted by the United States Attorney's 
Office, the Federal Defender Program, Inc., and the United States Probation Office for the 
Northern District of Georgia; 
UPON REVIEW of Amendment 821 of the United States Sentencing Guidelines, which 
amends the text in U.S.S.G. §§ 4Al.1 and 4Cl.1 and grants authority to district courts to grant 
defendants' motions for retroactive reductions in sentence pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2); 
RECOGNIZING that no defendant may be released under Amendment 821 until February 
1, 2024, and recognizing that this delay will allow judges, the Bureau of Prisons, and the United 
States Probation Office adequate time to review defendants' cases and, for those defendants 
eligible for release, ensure that each prisoner receives appropriate transitional services-including 
placement in halfway houses- to help increase the chances of successful reentry into society; 
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED pursuant to the provisions of the Criminal Justice Act, 18 
U.S.C. §§ 3006A(a)(l) and (c), that the Federal Defender Program, Inc., is appointed to review the 
file of each defendant on the United States Sentencing Commission's list and eve1y other 
defendant who files in this Court a pro se motion for a reduction in sentence under Amendment 
821 and 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2). The Federal Defender Program also is appointed to review the 
case of each defendant who files a motion to appoint counsel to pursue such a motion or who 
directly contacts the Court or the Federal Defender Program asking whether he or she is eligible 
Case 1:22-cr-00284-SEG-CMS     Document 48     Filed 11/20/23     Page 1 of 3

for a reduced sentence under the amended guideline. The Federal Defender Program will ascertain 
each defendant's eligibility for relief and whether a conflict of interest precludes it from 
representation. The Federal Defender Program must notify the Court upon identifying a prohibitive 
conflict in which the prospective client's interests are materially adverse to those of a current or 
former client, and the Court will consider appointing a member of the Criminal Justice Act panel 
of this District. The Federal Defender Program also must send a letter to each defendant whose 
case is reviewed through this order that explains the limited scope ofthis appointment and that the 
defendant may decline or opt out of the representation; 
IT ALSO IS ORDERED that upon request, the United States Probation Office will 
provide the Federal Defender Program, counsel who have been retained by defendants, and the 
United States Attorney's Office a copy of the Presentence Report and Statement of Reasons for 
each defendant's case reviewed through this administrative order, plus a comparison of the 
defendant's initial sentencing guidelines calculations and the amended guidelines calculations so 
that all parties have the information needed to file their pleadings; 
IT ALSO IS ORDERED that the United States Attorney's Office, in conjunction with the 
Federal Defender Program and the United States Probation Office, must, when practicable, 
prioritize defendants by release date. For example, the parties will prioritize the review of motions 
for eligible defendants with projected release dates in 2024, then review all eligible defendants 
scheduled for release in 2025, and so on, until all eligible defendants' motions have been reviewed; 
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that all motions already filed by, and those filed in the 
future by, defendants seeking relief under Amendment 821, be STAYED until February I, 2024, 
after which those motions will be addressed in the order outlined above. 
2 
Case 1:22-cr-00284-SEG-CMS     Document 48     Filed 11/20/23     Page 2 of 3

Prepared and Presented By: 
Ryan K. Buchanan, United States Attorney 
Stephanie A. Kearns, Executive Director, 
Federal Defender Program, Inc. 
Copy to: 
HON. TIMOTHY C. BATTEN, SR. 
CHIEF UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE 
Donna M. High, Chief United States Probation Officer 
3 
Case 1:22-cr-00284-SEG-CMS     Document 48     Filed 11/20/23     Page 3 of 3

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