Defendant's Sentencing Memorandum — United States v. Damisha Brown (Southern District of West Virginia)

Summary

A defense sentencing memorandum in United States of America v. Damisha Brown, Criminal Action No. 2:24-cr-00192-06, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, filed August 29, 2025 as Document 380. Through counsel, Ms. Brown asks for a sentence of zero months or time served followed by supervised release. It states that she pleaded guilty on June 5, 2025 to Count One of the Superseding Indictment, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, with an advisory guideline range of four months to ten months. It cites her care for her children, her jobs, JSIN data showing a median of zero months for similar defendants, and her agreement that she owes restitution of at least $12,125. It is signed /s/ Clayton T. Harkins of Dinsmore & Shohl LLP.

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“Defendant's Sentencing Memorandum — United States v. Damisha Brown (Southern District of West Virginia).” Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/380-sentencing-memorandum-as-to-damisha-brown-1e144cdf9b/, SHA-256 4bb680417b07b2516c14a3f72a1ccb175a633ca812a53e77a1b0083e4f80d286.

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Case 2:24-cr-00192 Document 380 Filed 08/29/25 Page 1 of 5 PageID #: 2489

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF WEST VIRGINIA
CHARLESTON DIVISION

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff,

v. Criminal Action No. 2:24-cr-00192-06
Judge Irene C. Berger

DAMISHA BROWN,

Defendant.

SENTENCING MEMORANDUM

Defendant Damisha Brown, by counsel, submits this Sentencing Memorandum for

consideration by the Court at her upcoming sentencing hearing. For the reasons set forth below,

Ms. Brown requests that the Court impose a sentence of zero months or time served to be followed

by a period of supervised release.

I. Legal Objections.

Ms. Brown has no legal objections to the probation officer’s calculation of her offense level

or criminal history points as set forth in the presentence report (“PSR”). On June 5, 2025, Ms.

Brown plead guilty to Count One of the Superseding Indictment charging her with conspiracy to

commit bank fraud. Ms. Brown’s total offense level is nine, which includes a two level reduction

for acceptance of responsibility. See U.S.S.G. § 3E1.1(a); PSR ¶¶ 18-28. Ms. Brown has one

criminal history point placing her in criminal history category I. See PSR ¶¶ 29-33. The

corresponding advisory guideline range is four months to ten months. See PSR ¶ 52.
Case 2:24-cr-00192 Document 380 Filed 08/29/25 Page 2 of 5 PageID #: 2490

II. 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) Factors for Consideration.

A. Nature and Circumstances of the Offense and the History and
Characteristics of the Defendant.

Ms. Brown is a 32 years-old single mother and the primary caregiver for her three children

– Kharin (age 13), Kamryn (age 11), and Braya (age 5). See PSR ¶ 41. Kharin and Braya reside

with Ms. Brown full-time. See PSR ¶ 41. Braya’s father is incarcerated, and Kamryn’s father was

murdered in 2022. Kamryn has since primarily resided with his paternal grandmother; however,

Ms. Brown still maintains daily contact with Kamryn, and he resides with Ms. Brown on weekends

and holidays. See PSR ¶ 41. Any period of imprisonment would result in a significant loss for her

three children. The requested sentence would allow Ms. Brown to continue providing for her

family without being overly punitive.

Ms. Brown is employed full-time as a direct support person at Spectrum for Living, a group

home for disabled adults, where she works approximately 70 hours per week. See PSR ¶ 47. She

is also employed part-time as a bartender at The Foxes restaurant and cocktail lounge and as driver

for Lyft. See PSR ¶ 47. A sentence of imprisonment would likely result in the loss of Ms. Brown’s

full-time job, and as a convicted felon, would limit her employment opportunities, creating a

financial hardship for her and her family. In addition, the requested sentence would allow her to

continue working and begin making restitution payments in a timelier manner.

Ms. Brown does not object to the description of the offense conduct as set forth in the PSR.

See PSR ¶¶ 7-14. Ms. Brown has fully accepted responsibility for her actions and has expressed

regret for committing the offense. See PSR ¶ 17. Ms. Brown plead guilty to the indictment and has

complied with the terms of her plea agreement, thus saving the both the Court and the Government

time and resources. Ms. Brown has been on bond with pretrial services supervision since March

3, 2025, and has maintained compliance with the conditions of her bond. See PSR ¶ 6.

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Case 2:24-cr-00192 Document 380 Filed 08/29/25 Page 3 of 5 PageID #: 2491

B. Need for the Sentence Imposed to Reflect the Seriousness of the
Offense, to Promote Respect for the Law, and to Provide Just
Punishment for the Offense; to Afford Adequate Deterrence to
Criminal Conduct; to Protect the Public from Further Crimes of the
Defendant; and to Provide the Defendant with Needed Educational or
Vocational Training, Medical Care, or Other Correctional Treatment
in the Most Effective Manner.

The requested sentence is a sentence that is sufficient but not greater than necessary to

satisfy the purposes set forth in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)(2). This offense is Ms. Brown’s first felony

offense, and any sentence of imprisonment would represent a significant amount of time away

from her family. Ms. Brown is also subject to a term of supervised release, which will allow the

Court to monitor Ms. Brown’s activities to make sure that she does not engage in any criminal

conduct.

C. Kinds of Sentences Available and the Kinds of Sentence and the
Sentencing Range Established by the Guidelines.

Ms. Brown does not object to the available sentencing options as set forth in the PSR. See

PSR ¶¶ 51-94.

D. Pertinent Policy Statements.

Ms. Brown does not believe that there are any pertinent policy statements.

E. Need to Avoid Unwarranted Sentence Disparity among Defendants
with Similar Records Who Have Been Found Guilty of Similar
Conduct.

The need to avoid unwarranted sentencing disparity warrants consideration of a downward

variance. The advisory guideline range set forth in the PSR is four to ten months. See PSR ¶ 52.

JSIN data shows that the sentence imposed during the last 5 fiscal years for defendants with similar

records who have been found guilty of similar conduct was an average of two months and a median

of zero months. See PSR ¶¶ 119-122. The requested sentence would avoid unwarranted sentence

disparity and would be consistent with JSIN data for defendants with similar records who have

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Case 2:24-cr-00192 Document 380 Filed 08/29/25 Page 4 of 5 PageID #: 2492

been found guilty of similar conduct. See PSR ¶¶ 119-122. The requested sentence would also be

consistent with the sentences imposed on co-defendants and defendants sentenced in related cases.

F. Need to Provide Restitution to Any Victim of the Offense.

Ms. Brown has agreed that she owes restitution of at least $12,125. See PSR ¶¶ 5, 15.

III. Witnesses to be Called.

Ms. Brown does not plan to call any witnesses at her sentencing hearing. Attached are

character letters received to date. Additional character letters from friends and family will be

tendered to the Court if any are received hereafter.

IV. Estimate of Time Needed for the Sentencing Hearing.

Counsel anticipates that this hearing should take no longer than 30-45 minutes.

DAMISHA BROWN

By Counsel

/s/ Clayton T. Harkins
Clayton T. Harkins (WVSB# 13409)
Dinsmore & Shohl LLP
707 Virginia Street East, Suite 1300
Charleston, WV 25301
Phone: (304) 357-0900
Fax: (304) 357-0919
clayton.harkins@dinsmore.com

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Case 2:24-cr-00192 Document 380 Filed 08/29/25 Page 5 of 5 PageID #: 2493

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF WEST VIRGINIA
CHARLESTON DIVISION

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff,

v. Criminal Action No. 2:24-cr-00192-06
Judge Irene C. Berger

DAMISHA BROWN,

Defendant.

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I, Clayton T. Harkins, do hereby certify that the foregoing Sentencing Memorandum was

served upon all parties via the CM/ECF Court System on August 29, 2025:

Jonathan Storage
United States Attorney’s Office
300 Virginia Street East, Suite 4000
Charleston, West Virginia 25301
Counsel for the United States of America

/s/ Clayton T. Harkins
Clayton T. Harkins (WVSB# 13409)

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