1 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE NASHVILLE DIVISION 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, ) ) Plaintiff, ) v. ) ) CHRIS YOUNG, ) ) Defendant. ) _______________________________) No. 3:11-CR-00012-27 SENTENCING 8 9 -------------------------------------------------------------10 BEFORE THE HONORABLE KEVIN H. SHARP TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS AUGUST 28, 2014 11 12 -------------------------------------------------------------13 APPEARANCES: 14 For the Plaintiff: SUNNY A.M. KOSHY Office of the United States Atty 110 Ninth Avenue, S Suite A961 Nashville, Tennessee 37203 For the Defendant: HALLIE MCFADDEN Attorney at Law 6422 Gray Fryar Road P.O. Box 546 Signal Mountain, TN 37377 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 PREPARED BY: 22 23 WYNETTE C. BLATHERS, RMR, CRR Official Court Reporter 801 Broadway - Room A-837 Nashville, TN 37203 (615) 401-7221 24 25 Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 1 of 49 PageID #: 11965 2 1 The above-styled cause came on to be heard on August 2 28, 2014, at 10:35 a.m., before the Honorable Kevin H. Sharp, 3 when the following proceedings were had, to-wit: 4 COURTROOM DEPUTY: All rise, please. 5 The United States District Court for the Middle 6 District of Tennessee is now in session, the Honorable Kevin 7 H. Sharp presiding. 8 THE COURT: 9 Thanks. Y'all can be seated. Give me two seconds here, more than two seconds. All right. Okay. We're 10 here in the sentencing in the case of United States v. Chris 11 Young. 12 report? Everyone has had a chance to read the presentence 13 MS. MCFADDEN: Yes, your Honor. 14 MR. KOSHY: Yes, your Honor. 15 THE COURT: Okay. I don't think there were any 16 objections. 17 conviction itself, but you didn't have any objections to the 18 PSR? 19 I know you've got your outstanding appeals on the MS. MCFADDEN: I did, your Honor. Again, mostly they 20 were factual, and I sent it by letter to Ms. Winfree on 21 June 30th. 22 THE COURT: The last thing I have says defense 23 counsel advises there's no objections to the presentence 24 report except defendant does not accept his guilt by jury 25 verdict on Counts 1, 11, and 12. That's the last thing I Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 2 of 49 PageID #: 11966 3 1 have. MS. MCFADDEN: 2 3 I'd be happy -THE COURT: 4 5 I have my copy, your Honor. Let me look at them. Have you seen these, Mr. Koshy? 6 MR. KOSHY: I must have at some point. 7 THE COURT: Okay. 8 MR. KOSHY: I don't recall specifically. 9 THE COURT: Well, take a look at them first. 10 MS. MCFADDEN: 11 I would be more than happy to -- 12 THE COURT: 13 MS. MCFADDEN: It was sent by email to everybody, but I just didn't get it. Were they -- It was a document I know Ms. Winfree 14 had a hard time opening and emailed me, and I sent it in a 15 different format. 16 Your Honor, may I approach? 17 THE COURT: Yeah. Well, this isn't just factual, 18 though. You're objecting to the calculation of the offense 19 level on at least one of the counts; right? 20 MS. MCFADDEN: 21 THE COURT: That's correct, your Honor. Well, you object to 8 through 21, but 22 you're not objecting to 19; right? 23 his criminal history. 24 MS. MCFADDEN: 25 THE COURT: This is just going through Your Honor, I'm sorry. What -- On paragraph 19 you objected to 8 through Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 3 of 49 PageID #: 11967 4 1 21. I'm just going through these paragraphs. 2 are -- 3 MS. MCFADDEN: 4 THE COURT: A lot of them Factual. -- the factual allegations, and we heard 5 this during the trial. 6 his arrest being convicted of a felony offense, and then it 7 goes through what they were. 8 convictions as well? Are you challenging these Paragraph 19 on page 11. MS. MCFADDEN: 9 But then on 19 it talks about prior to Your Honor, there was a juvenile 10 arrest that we're challenging, not the other arrests. 11 client advises me he was never convicted of burglary. THE COURT: 12 My Well, but 19(a) is manufacture, delivery, 13 sale, and possession of a Schedule II controlled substance, 14 and 19(b) is possession of less than .5 grams of cocaine with 15 intent to manufacture, sell or deliver. MS. MCFADDEN: 16 17 18 mistake. Your Honor, I must have made a It's paragraph 56 that's listed. THE COURT: Well, I haven't gotten there yet. 19 going through your 8 through 21. 20 all of that? 21 MS. MCFADDEN: 22 THE COURT: 23 MS. MCFADDEN: I was But are you including 19 in No, your Honor. Okay. I'm sorry. 24 long time since I wrote that. 25 THE COURT: Like I said, it's been a Well, I apologize. I just saw it today. Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 4 of 49 PageID #: 11968 5 MS. MCFADDEN: 1 2 No. I apologize too. I didn't realize nobody got it, otherwise I would have ensured. Your Honor, with the Court's permission, I have a 3 4 copy of the letter on my phone. 5 to -- 6 THE COURT: So Mr. Koshy and I are able And you're going to need some time to go 7 through it because I want you to respond to these things as 8 well. Let's just come back in 15 minutes. MR. KOSHY: 9 10 ready. I'll be ready whenever the Court is Is it possible I could get a copy of the letter? 11 THE COURT: Yeah. 12 MR. KOSHY: And maybe if we could file that as part 13 of the record maybe. THE COURT: 14 Okay. Let's just come back in 15 15 minutes, and let me know what your response is to those 16 things. All right? Okay. 17 COURTROOM DEPUTY: 18 (Brief recess.) 19 COURTROOM DEPUTY: 20 THE COURT: 21 Thanks. All rise, please. All rise, please. Thanks. Y'all can be seated. Well, go ahead if you've got something to say. 22 MR. KOSHY: Only if the Court needs something. 23 THE COURT: Yeah. Hang on one second. Here's what I 24 want to do: I would like to clear the courtroom and talk to 25 Mr. Young and Ms. McFadden because I've got some questions for Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 5 of 49 PageID #: 11969 6 1 them. So if everybody can step out, and we're just going to 2 leave these two in here along with the marshal's office. (Whereupon, everyone instructed to exit the courtroom 3 4 complied, and the proceedings continued ex parte.) - 5 6 7 - (Whereupon, those instructed to exit re-entered the courtroom and the proceedings continued.) THE COURT: 8 9 - Okay. Mr. Koshy, you were about to have Yes. First of all, your Honor, could we responses. MR. KOSHY: 10 11 please make the June 30th, 2014, letter a part of the record 12 in some way? 13 THE COURT: Yeah. 14 MR. KOSHY: Thank you. As far as the objection to 15 the summary of a very long trial and the few paragraphs of the 16 presentence report, this Court presided over the trial itself 17 and surely is relying on its memory of the actual evidence 18 rather than a summary. 19 believe that the defendant's objection is too general to 20 address. 21 But to the extent it's necessary, we I think the only pertinent portion of the second 22 sentence of the letter is the simple fact that the defendant 23 does not object to paragraph 19, which is the prior drug 24 felonies. 25 paragraphs 41 and 43 and further on in the presentence report. And, of course, the same felonies are reiterated in Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 6 of 49 PageID #: 11970 7 1 And there's no objection to those paragraphs. 2 THE COURT: Right. And Ms. McFadden told me that 36 3 was a misstatement. 4 enhancement paragraph that circles back around and picks up 5 those same prior convictions. 6 MR. KOSHY: She's not objecting to 36, which was the Okay. The objection to paragraph 24, which is 7 that he should receive the two- or three-level credit for 8 acceptance of responsibility because he pled guilty to the 9 felony possession is addressed by Sentencing Guideline 10 1B1.4(a)(5). And that's the rule that provides for the 11 sequence by which the various calculations in the guidelines 12 are to be applied. 13 apply the grouping rules, and only after that, is there the 14 consideration of acceptance of responsibility. As you go through everything and then you 15 So what that basically means is you can't just admit 16 guilt or accept responsibility in some manner on one facet of 17 an overall crime and thus be entitled to acceptance of 18 responsibility on the overall crime. 19 accepted responsibility for the overall conduct because even 20 in this letter he continues to object to his -- to the facts 21 which the jury may have used. 22 responsibility, and it's his burden to show that he has 23 accepted responsibility. 24 25 It's clear he hasn't So he has not clearly accepted As to paragraph 30 -- and basically that's the paragraph that deals with the calculation leading to the Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 7 of 49 PageID #: 11971 8 1 1.4 kilos of crack. First of all, the objection is 2 immaterial. 3 the guideline offense level or the statutory penalty 4 applicable in this case. That calculation has nothing to do with either The proof there basically goes through some calls 5 6 that were played at trial accounting for about $40,000 of 7 transactions, and then there was the $10,000 found under 8 Mr. Young at the time of the take-down at the Shell gas 9 station. The 40 and the call, the 10, leads to the 50. The 10 proof at trial was that the defendant initially was getting 11 crack cocaine from Mr. Porter and then switched to getting 12 cocaine, learning how to cook it, manufacturing crack cocaine 13 by which he could bring back extras basically on the crack 14 cocaine. 15 from an ounce of cocaine. 16 He could produce more than an ounce of crack cocaine So that's the gist of that proof there. So he took 17 the $50,000 by about a thousand dollars an ounce and came up 18 to a crack equivalency calculation. 19 ounce was inflated somewhat to let's say $1200 an ounce, which 20 would reduce the actual ounces applicable, even that 21 20 percent increase in the value of the cocaine would not 22 bring the crack cocaine amount down below the threshold. 23 Even if the cost per In any case, the defendant was a career offender, so 24 the offense level is 37, regardless of the 35 listed as the 25 offense guideline for the $50,000 worth of crack cocaine. Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 8 of 49 PageID #: 11972 9 1 Therefore, the offense level 35 is also moot and immaterial. 2 It's still from an offense level 37. 3 As to paragraph 56, I have -- and, again, it's 4 immaterial. There's no points. There's nothing for this. 5 It's an unadjudicated juvenile arrest for burglary and 6 vandalism. 7 she has or I have, which is from, I believe, the juvenile 8 court showing arrests for burglary and vandalism. 9 that's something that I don't believe the Court has to make a Probation officer relies on a record which either 10 particular determination on. 11 Ms. McFadden over the break. Again, We've shown the document to 12 And probation office on paragraph 72 is certainly 13 agreeable to changing month to week as the 200- to $300 in 14 earnings. 15 THE COURT: Okay. 16 MR. KOSHY: Paragraph 89 is the denial of federal 17 benefits. That accurately quotes the guideline. Regardless 18 of that, under the statute that's cited in paragraph 88, it's 19 not just may deny. 20 must deny. That's the government's specific response to the 21 objection. I think the government's basic point, however, is 22 that none of it matters. 23 which I can't remember the actual rule, the Court must make 24 determinations on any objections made unless the Court 25 determines that those objections don't affect the sentence to Congress has determined that the Court And under the appropriate rule, Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 9 of 49 PageID #: 11973 10 1 be imposed. And I think that's the situation here. 2 That's all I have unless the Court has -- 3 THE COURT: No. That's it. I agree with you that 4 none of those objections, particularly where you take out the 5 objection to paragraph 19 and 36. 6 difference, and if they do, somebody will tell me later. 7 The others don't make a Now, I understand under the case of United States v. 8 Booker, sentencing guidelines are not mandatory. 9 advisory. They're And I'm not bound to impose sentences within those 10 guidelines. 11 fashion a sentence that's sufficient but not more harsh than 12 necessary. 13 everybody knows is coming is certainly more harsh than is 14 necessary, and I wish it was not that way. 15 Rather, I can look at the 3553 factors and That's out the window here. The sentence that Mr. Young was convicted on four counts, conspiracy to 16 distribute and possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or 17 more of cocaine and 280 grams or more of crack cocaine, 18 attempted possession of a detectable amount of cocaine with 19 intent to distribute within a thousand feet of a school, 20 possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking 21 crime, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. 22 Using the 2013 edition of the guideline -- except for 23 the factual allegations, there was no objection to the actual 24 calculation itself; is that correct? 25 MS. MCFADDEN: Other than the things that were Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 10 of 49 PageID #: 11974 11 1 mentioned. 2 THE COURT: 3 a total offense level of 37. 4 with regard to the objection that was noted, it won't make any 5 difference, establish 6 points, which put him in a category 3. 6 But the career offender designation makes his category, 7 criminal history category, 6. 8 that except as noted. 9 All right. Okay. Ultimately end up with The criminal history, except And there were no objections to I noted from the PSR Mr. Young was born in 10 Clarksville in 1988. 11 father, and I don't believe anyone knows where his father is 12 at this moment. 13 problems, spent time in and out of jail, although she 14 currently resides in Clarksville and is unemployed. Both he 15 and his mother have significant physical problems. He had a 16 biological brother who appears to have committed suicide, that 17 he was close with that brother. 18 He's had no relationship with his His mother had her own substance abuse There were issues of domestic abuse in the home when 19 his mother remarried. 20 time he and his brother were 13 and 17, they were left to 21 their own devices, which you see from his criminal history 22 really starts the downward spiral. 23 For all intents and purposes, by the He has sickle cell anemia. He's got some chronic leg 24 pain, no history of mental health issues. There was some 25 history of substance abuse beginning back in high school. Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 11 of 49 PageID #: 11975 He 12 1 claims he does not have a drug problem now and perhaps he 2 hasn't had one for several years. 3 He has a G.E.D. He attended some modeling and acting 4 classes and was an aspiring rap artist, which also led to his 5 involvement, I think, with people that he clearly should not 6 have been involved with. He has little or no work history. 7 There was some 8 time at the family funeral home and doing some packing jobs. 9 He has no ability to pay a fine. 10 Ms. McFadden, do you have any proof to introduce? 11 MS. MCFADDEN: 12 THE COURT: No, your Honor. Okay. Mr. Young, you have the right to 13 address the Court, speak on your own behalf. 14 to exercise that right, but the federal rules certainly allow 15 for it. 16 THE DEFENDANT: You don't have First and foremost, I'd like to say 17 thank you, your Honorable Judge Sharp, and to the courts for 18 letting me speak today. 19 a good morning. I hope everyone here has been having 20 I wish we had the time to -- first of all, I did not 21 write anything like you suggested because I didn't want to be 22 untruthful. 23 heart and not from my brain. 24 one-on-one, tete-a-tete, but since we don't, I'll try to make 25 this substantive. I wanted to be solemnly sincere, coming from my I wish we had the time to Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 12 of 49 PageID #: 11976 13 1 My first plea of guilty was for my gun charge. 2 Before I was found guilty at trial I had planned on coming 3 here impressing you, Judge Sharp, leaving you disposed to me, 4 showing you that these four years I've been incarcerated I've 5 been studious with my time taking copious notes. 6 accomplish this I was going to speak on a variety of topics, 7 one of which being American history. 8 To I'm familiar that William Penn purchased Pennsylvania 9 from the Delaware Native Americans, how Washington disbanded 10 the troops in 1783, how March 16th, 1783 Washington delivered 11 the speech that made the troops avert their plans -- 12 THE COURT: I don't want to interrupt you. Can I 13 stop you for a second and slow you down a little bit so that I 14 can catch what you're saying. 15 also, the court reporter has to take it down. 16 THE DEFENDANT: 17 THE COURT: I want to listen to you, and, Yes, sir. You may have a speed that you have to do 18 this in, but if you can slow down, it would help me because I 19 want to hear what you have to say. 20 THE DEFENDANT: And thank you for listening. 21 -- how Pass and Stow recast the Liberty Bell the 22 first time it was cracked, how Federic Bartholdi designed the 23 Statue of Liberty, how John Adams and Thomas Jefferson both 24 died on the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of 25 Independence July 4, 1826, how Constantino Brumidi consummated Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 13 of 49 PageID #: 11977 14 1 the fresco of George Washington that's at the Capitol in 1865, 2 how the beginning of the 20th century the whole world was in 3 civil and political uproar leading to the assassination of a 4 few political figures, including our own 25th President, 5 McKinley, how in 1913 the Federal Reserve system was 6 established, how in 1934 the SEC was established. 7 I'm familiar with President Nixon and the Watergate 8 scandal, how 1960 and 1970 was the greatest economical decade 9 in out country's history, the GNP normally doubling and nearly 10 tripling. 11 Reagan's theory on the government's role in society, the 1987 12 Wall Street crash; how the beginning of the nineties, like 13 around 1992, America changed the way it kept up with its 14 economical data, switching from the GNP to the GDP. 15 I'm familiar with Margaret Thatcher and Ronald And I'm familiar with all 27 Amendments having 16 memorized and can summarize them if I was asked. I'm familiar 17 with the original Declaration of Independence that was printed 18 by John Dunlap, and if given a chance to be released within a 19 reasonable amount of time, I can do something remarkable and 20 epic like Thomas Lynch, Jr., and Edward Rutledge, the two 21 youngest men that signed the Declaration at the modest age of 22 27; or like Nick D'Aloisio, the teenager who sold his company, 23 Summly, to Yahoo the beginning of 2013 for 300 million; or 24 like David Clark, who sold his company, Tumblr, to Yahoo in 25 2013 for a billion dollars, whom of which was 26 years old, a Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 14 of 49 PageID #: 11978 15 1 high school dropout with no further education; or like 2 Alexander Graham Bell, who was 29 when he patented and 3 exploited the telephone. 4 But I'm not going to focus on that. I was going to speak on how I've read the notes or 5 biographies and researched and just studied some of the 6 greatest historians, writers, philosophers, scientists, and 7 great thinkers in recorded human history, such as Xenophon, 8 Herodotus, Diotrephes, Heraclitus, Hermes Trismegistus, 9 Pythagoras, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Epicurus, Zeno, 10 Zoroaster, Confucius, Laozi, Antipida, Avicenna, Averroes, 11 Aquinas, Copernicus, Tycho, Kepler, Leibniz, Newton, 12 Descartes, Spinoza, Michelangelo, Leonardo Da Vinci, 13 Machiavelli; King John and the ordinances he placed inside the 14 Magna Carta. 15 Sir Francis Bacon, whom -- which was very loyal to 16 Queen Elizabeth and King James, and some of his philosophies 17 and doctrine were the foundation for the Royal Society; 18 Voltaire; Paracelsus, who actually was not named that but 19 changed his name to that by action that was meaning to be 20 demeaning and disparaging to the life and career of 21 successors; Benjamin Franklin; Heisenberg; Einstein; the Bohr 22 scientists, father and a son; Soren Kierkegaard; Friedrich 23 Nietzsche; Fyodor Dostoyevsky; Jean-Paul Sartre; James Adams; 24 William Chancellor; C.P. Snow; Jan Christian Smuts. 25 I've also studied some financiers and economists who Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 15 of 49 PageID #: 11979 16 1 were also philosophers in their own right, such as Steven Grod 2 (phonetic), who was the richest man in America in his time; 3 John Pierpont Morgan, who was the founder of the Bank JPMorgan 4 and also had something to do with Morgan Stanley getting 5 started; Andrew Carnegie, whose philanthropic activities 6 account for opening over 2500 libraries in Canada, America, 7 and Europe and also for donating up to $300 million; Mayer 8 Rothschild, who showed the correlation between energy and 9 economics and also founded the International Banking House of 10 11 Rothschild. John Maynard Keynes, whose economic philosophy and 12 doctrines have been the foundation for the IMF, the 13 International Monetary Foundation -- Fund, and whose economic 14 philosophy was dubbed the Keynesian Theory and has been a 15 playbook for the Federal Reserve the last couple of years 16 during its accommodative monetary policy; Pierre Samuel du 17 Pont de Nemours, who was a politician and a scientist and who 18 pushed his friend, our third President, Thomas Jefferson, for 19 a national education system, which never took hold in America 20 but it did in France, and whose son, Eleuthere DuPont, also 21 started and founded the company DuPont that we know today; 22 James Mill and his son, John Stuart Mill, who also pushed 23 America for a public education system. 24 25 James Smithson who bequeathed his riches to his nephew but left a clause in there that if he didn't have any Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 16 of 49 PageID #: 11980 17 1 progeny, for him to leave it to America, which founded the 2 Smithsonian Institution and owns a couple of libraries and 3 museums; and Franco Modigliani, 1985 Nobel Prize winner in 4 economic science and Alfred Nobel himself, who started the 5 prize to promote the advancement of civilization and good will 6 towards humanity, who actually wrote the five categories for 7 the award to be nominated in on a half of a notebook -- I mean 8 half of a napkin in a Swedish country club just two weeks 9 before his death. Your Honorable Judge Sharp, I actually could probably 10 11 answer any question about these individuals' life or their 12 work, at the least summarize their work, but I'm not going to 13 focus on that. 14 look at the etymology and semantics of a word, but I'm not 15 going to focus on that. I was going to speak on philology. I love to I was going to speak on how I continue my studies of 16 17 the human anatomy that my grandfather started me on, but I 18 center it primarily on the human epithelial, the gustatory 19 senses, the ocular senses, the olfactory senses, and acoustic 20 senses. 21 But I'm not going to focus on that. I was going to speak on my love for financials and 22 how I'd like to become an R.A. and get into wealth management 23 once I'm released and how I keep up with a slew of corporate 24 CEO's, including Marissa Mayer of Yahoo, Tim Armstrong of AOL, 25 Tim Cook of Apple, Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, Dick Costolo Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 17 of 49 PageID #: 11981 18 1 of Twitter, Elon Musk of Tesla, Reed Hastings of Netflix, Bob 2 Iger of Disney, Blake Irving of godaddy.com, Satya Nadella of 3 Microsoft, Steve Cannon of the U.S. arm of Mercedes, Sergio 4 Marchionne of Fiat and Chrysler, Carlos Ghosn of 5 Nissan-Renault, Indra Nooyi of Pepsi, Muhtar Kent of 6 Coca-Cola, Bernard Arnault of LVMH, which owns luxury brands 7 like Christian Dior, Mark Jacobs, Louis Vuitton, Moet 8 Hennessy, Dom Perignon; Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan, Greg Creed of 9 Yum! Brands, which owns restaurants like Pizza Hut and Taco 10 Bell, KFC; Patrick Doyle of Domino's, Bill Simon and Doug 11 McCormick (sic) of Wal-Mart, Mary Barra of GM. 12 I could name CEO's for days or how I keep up with a 13 group of businessmen, fund managers and investors, such as 14 Stephen Schwarzman, Carl Icahn, Ray Dalio, David -- Don 15 Yacktman, Cliff Asness, Larry Robbins, Bill Ackman, Bill 16 Gross, David Miller, Mohamed El-Erian or how I simulated a 17 paper portfolio with the average of daily returns of 7 to 10 18 percent and weekly returns of 10 to 15 percent. 19 I'm familiar with the foreign trading platform and 20 try to keep up with the various currencies trading, such as 21 the Chinese Yuan, the Japanese Yen, the Korean Won, the 22 European Union's Euro, the UK's pound, the Turkish Lira, the 23 American Dollar, the Australian Dollar, the various different 24 types of pesos, the Indian Rupee. 25 I love hearing commentary from Alan Greenspan and Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 18 of 49 PageID #: 11982 19 1 Paul Volcker, both former Federal Reserve chairmen. 2 keep up with Christine Lagarde and her comments. 3 president of the IMF; Mark Carney, who is the governor of the 4 Bank of England. 5 pecuniary actions and policies. 6 FEC, the FTC, the FEC, the DOJ and its investigations and 7 rulings, and I've even got one of my girlfriends to buy me a 8 syllabus on corporate law. 9 that. 10 I try to She's the I do follow Mario Draghi and the ECB and its I try to keep up with the But I'm not going to focus on I was going to speak on how I'm familiar with some 11 few politicians that are in executive and legislative 12 branches, such as Speaker of the House, John Boehner; 13 Secretary of State, John Kerry; Secretary of Defense, Chuck 14 Hagel; Secretary of the Treasury, Jack Lew; Tennessee Senators 15 Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker, the latter of which is part of 16 the Senate Banking Committee; Senate Majority and Minority 17 Leaders Mitch McConnell and Harry Reid. 18 focus on them. 19 But I'm not going to The one politician I would like to speak on is former 20 Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, and I'm not going to 21 speak on whether Lawrence Summers should have stayed a 22 candidate or whether Don Kohn would have been a better 23 nomination than Janet Yellen. 24 on is some comments he made last year in a May and July 25 meeting regarding the labor force participation rate and the But what I would like to speak Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 19 of 49 PageID #: 11983 20 1 unemployment number, the fact that the longer an individual 2 stays without work, his knowledge, skills, and training and 3 ability become languid. 4 And this also leads me to speak on different surveys 5 and polls that have been conducted that shows the recidivism 6 rate is higher amongst individuals that have been incarcerated 7 for long periods of time and how even I myself do not believe 8 that it takes 30, 20, 15 or even 10 years for a person to 9 realize he done something wrong and he need to find a more 10 11 decorous way to go about it. Your Honorable Judge Sharp, as you know, I stand 12 before you today facing a life sentence based on two prior 13 felony convictions I obtained at the young tender age of 18, 14 which were intangible, one of which was the simple possession 15 of less than .5 grams, less than .5 grams. 16 Your Honorable Judge Sharp, you've seen enough drugs 17 in your day to know that's barely enough for an addict or user 18 to strike their lighter once and it's gone. 19 Speaking of addicts and users, if you don't mind, I'd 20 like to take this time to reflect on my childhood real quick, 21 your Honor. 22 probably can see from there, I have tattoo on my neck that 23 says feel my pain. 24 tattooed in such a conspicuous place? 25 younger and more immature, I wanted people to look past my As you know or can see in my appearance or Now, why did I get something like that Because when I was Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 20 of 49 PageID #: 11984 21 1 handsome looks, to acknowledge I was intrepid and to 2 acknowledge the fortitude I had to possess to deal with the 3 adversity in my life. 4 As you know and I've spoke on before, I have a 5 disease called sickle cell anemia. 6 have to be born with, which takes your blood cells from the 7 normal shape to a sickle shape, which makes you rheumatic and 8 locks your body up and causes excruciating pain. 9 was a child, I spent a lot of time in the hospital and up 10 under my mother, which in so many ways and words made me a 11 mother's boy, which also can help you imagine the pain I felt 12 watching her struggle with her addiction and domestic violence 13 in her various relationships. 14 need to prove myself. 15 can't play this sport, you can't do that, you can't drink this 16 liquid, you should only drink water. 17 to prove myself a lot. 18 It's a blood condition you So when I And it also had me feel like I I was told I couldn't do this, you It made me feel I need Like I've hinted and like you know, my mother had a 19 very extreme addiction to crack cocaine, which led her to 20 raising us in some of the severe and most critical conditions 21 a child should be raised in in America. 22 significant amount of time living with no lights and water. 23 When it was wintertime, she heated the house with kerosene. 24 When it was nighttime, she lit the house with candles. 25 We spent a So then just try to imagine two young kids, one of Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 21 of 49 PageID #: 11985 22 1 which almost a teenager, my brother, going to school with 2 holes in our shoes, their skin smelling like musk and grass 3 from playing outside the day before, their clothes too small 4 or in my case too big because most of the time I was trying to 5 wear my brother clothes, and the clothes smelling like 6 kerosene from being in the house. 7 and imagine the malodorous smell we was carrying to school 8 with us each and every day. 9 be upon first meeting us. Combine these two scents Imagine what your opinion would Imagine the emotion and anguish that me and my 10 11 brother dealt with at a young tender age, more so my brother 12 because most of the time I did not have the appropriate meal 13 unless my brother came upon some money and went to one of the 14 local neighborhood restaurants or stores and bought something 15 and came home and shared it. 16 bathed unless my brother sucked up his pride and asked one of 17 his friends in the neighborhood could we bathe at their house 18 or asked one of the neighbors could we bathe at their house, 19 and not to mention at this time my brother was going through 20 puberty. 21 was too dissident and insecure to approach them, not to 22 mention the occasional argument and fight a child has to deal 23 with when he's a teenager, but more so my brother because he 24 had to take up for his obstreperous young brother, which is 25 me. A lot of times I didn't have And he was wanting to deal with young ladies, but he I didn't know when to shut my mouth at times when I was Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 22 of 49 PageID #: 11986 23 1 younger. Well, like I said, we lived like this for a 2 3 significant amount of time, so it became brutal about the 4 conditions we were living in until a woman that was very close 5 with us, who was a good friend of my biological grandmother 6 before she passed, Ms. Dorothy Brown, offered us to come live 7 with them. 8 and revere Ms. Brown as our grandmother and started to call 9 her the nickname that everybody in the neighborhood called As time went on, me and my brother began to love 10 her, which was Big Mama, the most appropriate name for a 11 generous and benign woman like her, you know. But you also have to take into consideration she 12 13 already had four kids living with her, her nieces and nephews. 14 So adding me and my brother, this makes seven individuals 15 living in a three-bedroom house with one bathroom surviving 16 off a minimum wage paycheck. 17 to help provide us with the necessities like food, heat, 18 water, and shelter, she was not able to provide us with 19 material things that young teenagers and kids needed and 20 wanted, not to mention at the end of the day Big Mama was only 21 human. 22 So even though Big Mama was able So it was times that we would catch her talking out 23 loud questioning herself. Why am I going through this? Why 24 am I putting up with this? 25 void that me and my brother felt, a void that a lot of people Which only added to the emotional Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 23 of 49 PageID #: 11987 24 1 feel either when they're real young or when they get real old, 2 that sense of loneliness. 3 only increased at a time when me, my mother, and my 4 grandfather girlfriend happened to pull up on a crime scene 5 and witnessed my cousin being put into an ambulance from a 6 gunshot wound to the head. 7 witness at a young tender age of 10, but it was even harder 8 for my brother to accept given the fact that my cousin was one 9 of the only true brothers and father figures my brother had. 10 But eventually as time went on we filled this emotional void 11 because we got a sense of family and camaraderie from the guys 12 in the neighborhood who was going through struggles just like 13 us but just probably was not as severe and dire as me and my 14 brother's situations. You know what I'm saying? And this This was very traumatic for me to 15 And as time went on, by the time we became teenagers, 16 my brother, a middle aged teenager, and me just now becoming a 17 teenager at the age of 13, my father came back into my life. 18 Now when I say my father, Judge Sharp, as you know and as we 19 spoke on, I don't mean my biological father whom I've never 20 met or even seen a picture of, couldn't tell you if he was 21 standing in this courtroom right here today. 22 do love and revere as my daddy is George Rudolph, my mother's 23 ex-husband, whom we call Mickey. 24 25 But the person I He offered for me and my brother to come live with him because he was better off financially than Big Mama. But Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 24 of 49 PageID #: 11988 25 1 at the same time even though we accepted, me and my brother 2 had a great deal of resentment built up for my father because 3 we didn't understand how if you truly loved us you let us go 4 through these years of torment growing up in the hood, as we 5 called it, not to mention at this time most of the teenage 6 guys in my neighborhood had made their life change in 7 transition and decision and began selling drugs, taking 8 ordinary poverty stricken teenagers to being able to buy and 9 don the best clothes, taking ordinary broke teenagers and 10 being able to take the girlfriends to the movies and the high 11 school basketball games and football games and buy them chips, 12 candy, and pizza, and if you was good at it, taking a young 13 ordinary working broke teenager and making them be able to buy 14 a car and buy jewelry. Given the fact that my brother was a young teenager 15 16 and had a child on the way, a young lady or young daughter to 17 be exact, my niece, he was one of these teenagers that made 18 his life changing decision. 19 eschewed drugs. 20 them, and I tried to exert my energy towards the things that 21 other young teenagers was doing at the time, like playing 22 sports. 23 disease and the fact I was not good at it, just didn't last 24 very long. 25 scholastic material. Me at the time, I actually I hated them. I tried to stay away from But given the fact of my physical condition and my But I was a precocious young man, and I loved So I tried to focus on my academic work. Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 25 of 49 PageID #: 11989 26 1 But given the fact that it's hard to focus on a 2 textbook that's in front of you when you're staring at the 3 young lady sitting in front of you, your Honor, so it was 4 during this time where I started to engage with young ladies. 5 But it was hard for me to get the women given the fact that I 6 did not sell drugs. 7 other guys on impressing the young ladies. 8 9 It was hard for me to compete with the So it was around this time that I tried to focus on my finances. But, like I said, I hated drugs, so I tried to 10 do it the right way. 11 community are proletarians, which is actually not appealing to 12 me, and I was too young to work in a factory. 13 too young to even work in fast food, so given this fact I went 14 to the only man and the only business I knew would hire me, 15 which was Hooker's Funeral Home, my grandfather's funeral 16 home, Mr. Hooker. 17 definition, some of them would say my grandfather was 18 successful or rich. 19 Tennessee and several other small businesses. 20 But the only workers you see in my I was actually And depending on who you ask and their He owned several funeral homes in But given the fact that my grandfather -- it took for 21 me to get older and more mature for me to realize that my 22 grandfather did love us because I had a great deal of 23 resentment and thought he did not love us because how could 24 you be clad in tailor-made suits and jewelry and drive a 25 Mercedes and Cadillacs and we're growing up in the hood Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 26 of 49 PageID #: 11990 27 1 struggling. 2 and for my grandfather to pass -- while I was locked up he 3 passed away in 2012 -- for me to realize he did love us. 4 just chose to love us in his own way, given the fact that all 5 the years he had to deal with my mother and my uncle stealing 6 and lying and just denigrating his name. 7 love his grandkids from a distance. He He just chose to But upon my proposal he did accept me and did give me 8 9 And it took more me to grow older and more mature a job at the funeral home teaching me small parts of the 10 business and small parts of science, such as the human 11 anatomy, which I was very intrigued by. 12 problem. 13 measly $200 a month, which was barely enough to buy a pair of 14 Jordans, your Honorable Judge Sharp. 15 ever bought a pair of Michael Air Jordan tennis shoes. 16 start at 150- to $170, which was barely enough for me to be 17 able to have other money to do things on the side, not to 18 mention around this time I began to feel that loneliness 19 again, that emotional void. 20 But it was one My grandfather only paid me a pittance, a small, And I don't know if you They I felt like I was losing the only family I had, which 21 was my brother and the guys in my neighborhood. Because I did 22 not sell drugs I was not allowed to hang at the different 23 spots with them no more. 24 different topics and participate in different conversations 25 with them anymore, so it was around this time that I did I was not allowed to broach Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 27 of 49 PageID #: 11991 28 1 2 attempt to sell drugs. But given the fact that my brother always felt like 3 my guardian angel and my protector, he tried to stop this. 4 But once he seen how the future was in my efforts, he gave me 5 an ultimatum. 6 going to fight or just simply buy the drugs from me and hustle 7 with me out of my drug house, which happened to be my mother's 8 house while she was incarcerated. 9 the fact that by this time my brother and the guys in my 10 neighborhood were quasi successful buying multiple ounce 11 quantities of crack cocaine and cocaine. 12 He told me every time I see you me and you are I chose the latter given It wasn't hard for me to climb up in the latter, 13 which led to me being revered in some type of way, but at the 14 same time I did not do the same things everybody else did. 15 didn't squander my money. 16 kind of only see in movies. 17 financially responsible for several of my little cousins who 18 father was incarcerated. 19 I I actually did things that people I took it upon myself to be The kids in the neighborhood knew if that caught me 20 on report card day, that they could get some money from me for 21 their grades. 22 neighborhood knew that if they caught me at the local grocery 23 store or the little stores or neighborhood restaurants, I 24 would pay for their items. 25 neighborhood, I would help them out around the house or at the The geriatric and elderly people in my And if they caught me in the Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 28 of 49 PageID #: 11992 29 1 least pay a wino or a drug addict to help them out around the 2 house. 3 This led to me being extolled in some type of way. And even with all this praise, me and my brother was 4 still just kids. 5 making some reckless and perilous decisions, which led to the 6 Clarksville Drug Task Force having a search warrant for my 7 mother's house. 8 this day my brother actually had no drugs in the house. 9 given the fact that my brother name was on the search warrant 10 and the police did happen to find an ounce and a half of crack 11 and cocaine, my brother claimed the drugs and end up with a 12 lengthy time on probation. 13 I was 15. He was 18, which led to us still But this day I happened to be in school, and But Given the fact that I knew who the drugs truly 14 belonged to, I was left feeling guilty and ashamed and 15 obligated to help my brother in any type of way. 16 around this time that I did try to change my life. 17 attending acting and modeling school and began rapping, began 18 attending most of the make shift studios around the city. 19 So it was I started This was around the time that I formed a relationship 20 with the individual Robert Porter, and it was rumored that he 21 was building a more up-to-date and more sophisticated studio. 22 And he confided in me the truth and told me that he was 23 building a studio and that if I continued to make good music 24 and didn't mind releasing my music under the LameBoy 25 Entertainment logo, that any record deal him or the record Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 29 of 49 PageID #: 11993 30 1 label came about, that I would be a part of that record deal. 2 So I continued making my music, and I continued to hang with 3 Robert Porter. I know you don't like rap music, your Honor, Judge 4 5 Sharp. I'm pretty sure of it. 6 THE COURT: How do you know that? 7 THE DEFENDANT: But if you was to listen to my first 8 CD, it's a mixed tape, as we call it. If you was to listen to 9 it, I'm redundant because I stress the fact I wish me and 10 everyone around me could change their lives. I wished that, 11 and I stressed that in my music. 12 that me and Robert Porter began feeling like we was local 13 neighborhood celebrities, Clarksville superstars. It was also around this time 14 And it was around this time that my brother was going 15 through the hardest emotional time of his life because by this 16 time my brother had served a couple small stints for petty 17 violations of his probation. 18 querulous baby mother who actually was always complaining and 19 used his child as a bargaining chip for him to get her the 20 things she wanted, but at that time my brother was not selling 21 drugs. 22 He was working two jobs, but they were dead end jobs barely 23 paying him minimum wage. 24 going towards his daughter, not to mention at this time he was 25 also having to deal with the banter and the sneering of his He was dealing with his My brother was actually trying to do the right thing. And most of the money he had was Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 30 of 49 PageID #: 11994 31 1 peers. 2 Now, imagine young 20-years-olds with tens of thousands of 3 dollars, not to mention he had to deal with the belaboring of 4 his younger brother, which I was only trying to exhort him but 5 led to being disparaging and helped lead him to be more and 6 more deeper in his anguish. 7 And we all know how cruel young 20-year-olds can be. Around this time is when I happened to come to my 8 mother's house to check on him and something else, and I 9 happened to find my brother laying in a pool of blood from a 10 gunshot wound to the head. 11 severe for me to witness. 12 everybody else in my extended family and in the neighborhood, 13 I didn't want to argue over whether it was a suicide or a 14 robbery attempt turned into a murder. 15 only person that truly loved me unconditionally and truly was 16 there for me all of my life was dead and gone. 17 that the only person that truly, no matter what, had 18 understood everything I had been through was dead and gone. 19 This was very traumatic and very I was only 18. But unlike All I knew was that the All I knew was And, most important, I felt obligated, obligated to 20 take care of my niece to the utmost and to supply her with any 21 and everything I could get her with, which is something that 22 the arresting officers could attest to given the fact that my 23 car was filled with presents and gifts for a young child 24 because it was close to Christmastime we got arrested. 25 Honor, Judge Sharp, all of that happened in the year 2007, the Your Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 31 of 49 PageID #: 11995 32 1 exact year that I caught three-fourths of all my charges, the 2 year I was a fresh 18, and that was the past. 3 I'd like to fast forward back to the present, and I'd 4 like to just speak on some things that make me feel 5 ambivalent, the fact that I can help some guys in my pod study 6 for their G.E.D., for them to come back and tell me thanks, 7 soldier, I couldn't have done it without you, for me to be 8 conversing with the guards on the way back from court to give 9 them some tips on how to allocate their IRAs and 401-Ks and 10 for them to tell me, Wow, Chris, I did not know that, thanks; 11 for my friend getting into some trouble, for him to write me, 12 for me to write back and for him to respond thanks, bro. 13 It's amazing how encouraging you can be despite your 14 own situation. For my niece in Christmas of 2012, when she 15 was ten years old, to tell me, Uncle, Mama didn't give me 16 everything I wanted, but it's okay. 17 out you'll take me shopping. 18 2012 he was actually 13, and he told me, Chris, Mama didn't 19 really get me nothing for Christmas. 20 know if you was here, you would try to help. 21 made me feel proud of the man I am but despondent regarding 22 the fact that I cannot be there to help myself, my family or 23 even my community because I know if I was given a chance to be 24 released back into society within a reasonable amount of time, 25 your Honorable Judge Sharp, I could help show my community the I know as soon as you get My little cousin in Christmas But it's all right. I These things Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 32 of 49 PageID #: 11996 33 1 importance of attending city council meetings and continued 2 referendums. I could be the example for a man recently released 3 4 from prison who's trying to get his life on track and provide 5 for his family financially all while staying out of trouble. 6 I could be their pathosis (phonetic) for a young man coming up 7 in the inner city, ghetto or hood, or whatever you want to 8 call it, who's trying to provide for himself and his family 9 all while remaining true to himself on how he earns the money, 10 all while averting the trappings that come with his 11 environment. The television, the media, and entertainment is 12 13 glorified because, your Honorable Judge Sharp, he don't see 14 anybody that's successful in his community unless they're a 15 big time drug dealer or a rapper who claims he was a big time 16 drug dealer before he became a rapper. 17 who Mr. Donald was, the CEO of Carnival Cruise Lines which 18 owns -- Carnival Corporations which owns the Dublin Cruise 19 Lines. 20 could be successful like him. 21 Mr. Thomson, the CEO of McDonald's, which is one of the 22 biggest franchises in the world, is a black man, and he could 23 be successful like him. 24 Chenault, the CEO of American Express, a large financial 25 provider, is a black man, and he could be successful like him. He couldn't tell you He couldn't tell you that he's a black man, and he He couldn't tell you that He couldn't tell you that Ken Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 33 of 49 PageID #: 11997 34 He couldn't tell you Richard Parsons, the ex-CEO of 1 2 Time Warner, ex-chairman of Citigroup, and the current CEO of 3 the Los Angeles Clippers during the turmoil. 4 you that he's a black man, and he could be successful like 5 him. 6 the CEO of Xerox, a leading technology company, and he should 7 be aiming to have a girlfriend or a wife like her, not Nicki 8 Minaj. 9 He couldn't tell He couldn't tell you that Ms. Ursula is a black woman, He couldn't tell you the same. He probably couldn't even tell you any predominant 10 black man in American history. He couldn't tell you of 11 Thurgood Marshall or Richard Humphreys or Carter G. Woodson or 12 George M. James or Joseph Rainey -- actually, Joseph Rainey 13 was the first black man to be part of the House of 14 Representatives. 15 He couldn't tell you what a Tesla car was, let alone who the 16 scientist, Nikola Tesla, was. 17 difference between a regular engine or a diesel engine, let 18 alone who the scientist, Rudolf Diesel, is. 19 young man gets on Google every day, your Honor, but he looks 20 up something inane and frivolous, and he can't tell you who 21 Larry Page or Sergey Brin is, the founders of Google, at a 22 time in our country, Judge Sharp, when most economists, 23 politicians, and journalists constantly speak on income 24 equality and income mobility -- income inequality and income 25 mobility. He couldn't tell you who these people are. He couldn't tell you what the This hypothetical Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 34 of 49 PageID #: 11998 35 Two of the main factors they cite for the disparity 1 2 is being raised in a single-parent household instead of 3 parents that are married or being raised in a low-income 4 poverty-stricken neighborhood. 5 factors up together into one, Judge Sharp, it boils into 6 influences, the influences that a person is around. 7 was given a chance to be released back into society within a 8 reasonable amount of time, I know I could be a positive 9 productive person. And to sum both of these And if I I could be a positive influence on these 10 young men and women in my neighborhood. I could be the person 11 that helps teach them the financial literacy that I actually 12 feel is not adequately taught in the high schools. 13 I feel like instead of being forced to read 14 Shakespeare, we should be forced to read essays by Adam Smith 15 and Thomas Malthus, latter of which stressed the effects of 16 population on the economy, which might make them more 17 conscious about teen pregnancy. 18 to help provide for them financially and not just giving them 19 free money because Andrew Carnegie said it the best. 20 Dispossession of wealth should never come in the form of free 21 charity. 22 take responsibility of its own welfare. 23 teach these young men and women how to be successful and, most 24 important, how to be happy. 25 I feel like I could be there It should serve as a buttress for the community to And I'd just help And the vignette I've just given you, your Honorable Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 35 of 49 PageID #: 11999 36 1 Judge Sharp, is a pivot of what our policy was established 2 for, for a man to be able to live free, be happy, and be 3 successful. 4 decisions, he can and will face a penalty and a punishment. 5 That penalty and punishment is in hopes of rehabilitating him, 6 in hopes of rehabilitating him. But if he's caught making wrong actions and Your Honorable Judge Sharp, I have been 7 8 rehabilitated. As you know, I've just spent four years in a 9 jail, in a pod, where ignorance is proliferated. I'm talking 10 about it's just ridiculous. But I've stayed dedicated, 11 determined, and disciplined to learn the things I feel that I 12 need know and wanted to know to help me become a positive, 13 productive, successful, law-abiding citizen. Your Honorable Judge Sharp, the times I've been 14 15 around you I have grown to believe that you're a sapient man 16 who even was jovial during a tense situation where leading 17 attendance of the defendants and a jury, and for that I thank 18 you. 19 acknowledge my ambition, my order, and my potential, and that 20 if I was given a chance to be released back into society 21 within a reasonable amount of time, I could accomplish and 22 achieve my aspirations and hopefully go down in the ranks with 23 some of the men I admire the most, such as Reginald Lewis, 24 Robert Johnson, Henry Kravis, Christopher Gardner, Shawn 25 Carter, Dr. Robert Sheldon, Nicholas Berggruen. All I'm asking, your Honor, is that you please Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 36 of 49 PageID #: 12000 37 And there's one more thing I'd like to address while 1 2 I'm speaking to the Court. This right here is directed to 3 Mr. Sunny Koshy. 4 you. 5 extolled and venerated throughout the Sixth Circuit, even by 6 the defense, even though they might feel minimal towards you. 7 Judge Sharp, I don't know what your profession is or 8 the trajectory of it, but hopefully you realize I was a young 9 man, a young child, who actually wanted to be like Indiana Mr. Sunny Koshy, I have no hard feelings for I actually think you're a great attorney. You're 10 Jones. 11 archaeologist or an anthropologist. 12 isn't real. 13 saying. 14 responsibility of his own life and end up making some choice 15 that did prove I was financially responsible but made some 16 choices and also came to some consequences and repercussions 17 to now I'm a man, a man who has matured, a man who has become 18 versed within the focal points of knowledge. 19 man who knows everything, but I am a man who has the aptitude 20 and the comprehension and skills to learn everything and 21 utilize it. 22 I loved Indiana Jones, but I wasn't told I can be an I was told, child, that You can't be that, expletive. You know what I'm To be a teenager who felt like he needed to take Now, I'm not a I'm a man who's made plans and goals, a man who has 23 become conversant with finance and economics, a man who could 24 elucidate on why Peter A. Diamond and Dale Mortensen and 25 Christopher Pissarides won in 2010 the Nobel Prize for Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 37 of 49 PageID #: 12001 38 1 economic science speaking on the effects the policies and 2 regulations has on the economy. I'm a man who could expound the new Dodd-Frank laws 3 4 that's being implemented on the banks. 5 explain profoundly the Kering trade (phonetic) and why and how 6 policy and regulation here in developed countries like America 7 have major effects on emerging markets and countries. I'm a man who is not biased or prejudiced in any type 8 9 I'm a man who could of way. I could listen to the tape recordings of President 10 Nixon during the Watergate Scandal, which you can listen to on 11 wikileaks.com and listen to him make derogatory comments about 12 black people but still remain indifferent, but still 13 acknowledge he's a great businessman, especially during the 14 eighties when he was a head director of the business 15 roundtable -- a man who has become a lover of fine art and 16 hopes to become an avid collector one day. 17 to an auction or an art show, I probably could point out a 18 Bondone or Durer or Greene or Brueghel the Elder, Henri de 19 Toulouse-Lautrec, Bellini, a Venite, Michelangelo, a Leonardo 20 da Vinci, a Raphael, who actually died at the young tender age 21 of 32, a Bosch or Basquiat, a Van Gogh or Rembrandt or Warhol 22 or William Blake, who was also a poet and a critic, who some 23 would call an iconoclast. 24 25 And if I was took I'm a man who clearly loves history. I hope to become a collector of rare artifacts one day, whether it be Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 38 of 49 PageID #: 12002 39 1 something as simple as a horse saddle that George Washington 2 rode at Mount Vernon to a telescope that Benjamin Franklin 3 once used, to some of the pages out of Isaac Newton's notebook 4 that they found at Cambridge or a desk that William 5 Wilberforce once owned and probably drafted one of his letters 6 to the British Parliament that helped them abolish slavery in 7 the UK, a suit that Oliver Cromwell and Napoleon once wore, a 8 knife that Genghis Khan once had, a bow and arrow that Attila 9 the Hun probably once had, a cup that Caligula or Nero once 10 drunk wine out of or some jewelry that one of the great 11 pharaohs once owned, whether they be Ramses, Senusret, 12 Sneferu, Khufu, Zoser, Akhenaten or even Menes. 13 Most important, your Honorable Judge Sharp, I'm a 14 man, a man who has grown to acknowledge and realize the 15 importance and the power of volition. 16 and with my choice, I choose to be a positive, productive, 17 successful, law-abiding citizen if given the chance. 18 And with my free will As you can see, I've been practicing this for some 19 months now, about a year. I had it memorized, but to actually 20 get up here and speak to you -- I could visualize you in my 21 head all day long, but to actually look at you and to see you 22 look at me back in my eyes as a man and how I feel a man 23 should speak to another man, it kind of caught me and had me 24 stumbling a little bit. 25 you for letting me speak, and I want to say thank you for But what I do want to say is thank Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 39 of 49 PageID #: 12003 40 1 treating me like a man and looking at me like a man because 2 some people, they naturally look at us like we're something 3 else just because we've made mistakes and we've ended up on 4 the other side of the law. 5 listening to me, and I hope everyone here has a good evening. 6 THE COURT: So I want to say thank you for All right. I will say this: Thank you, sir. I appreciate 7 your words. When I was about your age, 8 somebody told me about C.P. Snow, who you mentioned in there. 9 When you get a chance, read "The Masters" or "The 10 Malcontents," a couple of great books that he wrote. 11 you mentioned Genghis Khan. 12 "Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World." 13 to read that when you get a chance. 14 really good. 15 a little easier to read. 16 it. There's a good book called You want All three of those are You might want to start with Genghis Khan. But you'll enjoy it. It's I appreciate Thank you for speaking to me. All right. 17 18 Also, that? Ms. McFadden, anything you want to add to As if there is anything you can now add. MS. MCFADDEN: 19 That's a tough act to follow, your 20 Honor. I don't know what else to say. The Court has noted 21 his PSR. 22 Court were free to just use the 3553(a) factors, his -- 23 Mr. Young's ambitions might be realized. 24 is not free to do that. 25 earlier, that the Court recommend BOP place him in a facility The Court has heard from Mr. Young. I think if the However, the Court We would ask, as Mr. Young brought up Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 40 of 49 PageID #: 12004 41 1 where he can get treatment for his sickle cell anemia as well 2 as his leg and also to recommend to the marshals and BOP to 3 move Mr. Young as soon as possible to a facility where he will 4 be instead of the county jail where he's been for four years. 5 THE COURT: Okay. Thank you. Mr. Koshy. 6 MR. KOSHY: Mr. Young mentioned a lot of people that 7 I know nothing about. This Court and the defendant are much 8 better read than I. 9 the defendant has caused all those people during this life in I live in the gutters, and I see the pain 10 this conspiracy. That's what this is about. 11 Congress has enacted the laws that it has. That's why Out of all of that, we heard nothing. 12 Of all that 13 reading and thinking that he did, did the Court hear one thing 14 that recognized that the things that got him reverence in that 15 community, which was drug dealing, is profiting from causing 16 other families the same kind of pain that he went through. He saw the effects of what he was doing in his own 17 18 life and in his brother's life and his mother's life. He 19 talked about his mother's addiction to crack. 20 his -- by the things that he did he gained the reverence in 21 the community. 22 drug dealer, was a role model to the community leading others 23 astray. 24 enforcement officers work so hard, risk their lives, to bring 25 this conspiracy to an end. That's how And when he talks about role models, he, as a That's what this is about, and that's why these law Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 41 of 49 PageID #: 12005 42 1 In just six months, June to December of 2010, this 2 defendant was responsible for over $40,000 of crack cocaine 3 dealing and there within a thousand feet of the Genesis Teen 4 Learning Center, a school that the defendant must have known 5 about. 6 which is in that same building. 7 which the proof at trial, is for troubled youth. 8 to further commit armed drug trafficking in a specially 9 protected zone, a loaded Ruger in a ten thousand dollar effort 10 to get cocaine that the defendant was going to cook into crack 11 cocaine. He was well familiar with Robert Porter's studio, Genesis Teen Learning Center, He decided So we're not talking about a nickel and dime drug 12 13 dealer on the street corner. 14 finances with improving his lot in life at the expense of 15 others. 16 have been in prison and maybe he should have been earlier, but 17 he was granted community corrections and was on community 18 corrections under the supervision of the judge, a probation 19 officer, when he did all of this. 20 This is a person focused on He had chances through the judicial system. He could Not here to -- there's no gloating involved in a life 21 sentence, neither is there any apology. We're simply here to 22 execute the law. 23 took his chances. 24 a gun and dealt crack, he took his chance, and he get away 25 with it for a very long time. The defendant had choices along the way. He Just like every time he went out there with And if not for this Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 42 of 49 PageID #: 12006 43 1 investigation, that's exactly what he would have been doing. So I'm here simply to ask the Court to execute the 2 3 laws as they are written, to impose the sentence required by 4 law, but I wanted to bring some other perspective to all this 5 that the defendant has said and through doing so cause the 6 defendant to think, while serving his life sentence, of really 7 why he is there. 8 willingness to harm others to make a profit for himself. It is because of his choices and his 9 And I think it is in the Harmelin case that I cited 10 in one of my pleadings, one of the Supreme Court justices, I 11 believe, in that case said something to the effect of this 12 notion that drug dealing is a victimless non-violent crime 13 is -- and these aren't his words, but it's his sentiment -- is 14 absolute rubbish. 15 make money, and now is the time to impose the sentence 16 required by law because of his choices. 17 all I have, your Honor. The defendant hurt people along the way to THE COURT: 18 All right. Thank you. That's I'll now state the sentence. 19 The attorneys have an opportunity to object before it's 20 imposed. 21 The statutory provisions on Counts 1 and 11 are as 22 we're all well aware of, mandatory life sentences. Count 12 23 is at least five years to run consecutively. 24 more than ten. 25 Category 6 criminal history, guideline range is 36 months to Count 13 is not Based on the total offense level of 37, Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 43 of 49 PageID #: 12007 44 1 life. 2 range becomes life. 3 Because of the mandatory life sentences the guideline Mr. Young is a career offender also convicted on 4 Count 12, which requires five years consecutive. So the 5 guideline provision becomes life plus 60 months. Supervised 6 release range is ten years to life on Counts 1 and 11 -- makes 7 no sense -- not more than five years on Count 12 and not more 8 than three on Count 13. 9 to five years on Count 12, one to three years on Count 13. Guideline range is ten to life, two 10 Probation is not authorized. 11 than $20 million on Counts 1 and 11, 250 on 12 and 13, 12 guideline range is 20,000 to 40 million. 13 applicable on Count 1, 12, and 13. 14 be ordered on Count 11. 15 dollars on each count is mandatory, so it's a total of $400. 16 Statutory fine range not more Restitution is not Community restitution can Special assessment of a hundred We've got multiple counts, and so we still need to go 17 through the 3553 factors. And I've considered them. 18 Unfortunately, on 1 and 11 there's only one of the factors 19 that matters, and that's the range established by statute. 20 I said earlier, none of the other factors would weigh in 21 terms -- would weigh in favor of or toward a sentence of life 22 imprisonment. 23 event 1 and 11 are set aside, I have looked at the nature and 24 circumstances of those offenses, your criminal history and 25 character. As But with regards to Counts 12 and 13, in the I look at the need to impose a sentence that Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 44 of 49 PageID #: 12008 45 1 reflects the seriousness of those offenses, promotes a respect 2 for the law, provide a just punishment and deterrence to 3 others. 4 I've looked at the statutory ranges considering the 5 ranges and the guideline range for those and a need to avoid 6 an unwarranted sentencing disparity which, back to 1 and 11, 7 the disparity with regard to your punishment on those two 8 counts is way out of whack with the punishment of the others, 9 nevertheless, on 12 and 13 to look for a sentence that's 10 sufficient but not more harsh than necessary. And recognizing the clear precedent that's out there, 11 12 there's -- the law is what the law is, so I recognize that 13 each situation is unique. Each defendant is supposed to be 14 treated as an individual. I don't think that's happening 15 here, but you are sentenced to a term of imprisonment in the 16 custody of the Bureau of Prisons for life on Counts 1 and 11. 17 Those will run concurrently. 18 to run consecutively and 60 months on Count 13 which will run 19 concurrently. 20 There will be 60 months on Counts 12 and 13. 21 concurrently. 22 You've got a mandatory special assessment of $400. 23 standard conditions of your release will apply. 24 conditions are on page 29 of the PSR. 25 this. 60 months on Count 12 that has There's no supervised release on 1 and 11. Your fine a waived. Those will run There's no restitution. The The special Maybe somebody can fix Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 45 of 49 PageID #: 12009 46 1 Pursuant to U.S. v. Bostic, any objections? 2 MS. MCFADDEN: 3 None that haven't already been raised, your Honor. 4 THE COURT: All right. The sentence is imposed. 5 MR. KOSHY: Your Honor, I hate to interrupt. 6 THE COURT: Do you have an objection? 7 MR. KOSHY: May I have just a moment? 8 (Brief Pause.) 9 MR. KOSHY: Sorry, Judge. On Count 13 -- on Count 12 10 and 13 the Court simply said 60 months concurrent -- I'm 11 sorry. Let me start over. 12 THE COURT: Right; on supervised release or -- 13 MR. KOSHY: I've confused myself. 14 THE COURT: No, no. 15 release. 16 right? 17 I said concurrent on supervised Consecutive on 12, which gets into life plus 60; MR. KOSHY: Yes, your Honor. I misspoke. I think 18 the Court said on Count 13 60 months, and you just said 19 concurrent. 20 can certainly be concurrent with Counts 1 and 11 and cannot be 21 consecutive. And I wanted to verify. 22 THE COURT: Correct. 23 MR. KOSHY: Sorry. 24 THE COURT: That's right. 25 PROBATION OFFICER: I think under the law it That's right. No, 1 and 11. Your Honor, I have a different Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 46 of 49 PageID #: 12010 47 1 matter. 2 THE COURT: Okay. 3 PROBATION OFFICER: Supervised release runs 4 concurrent on all counts. 5 months on Count 13, and the maximum is three years per statute 6 on Count 13. THE COURT: 7 8 It's three and five. 9 back. 10 Correct. You're right. I misspoke on that. You're right. It's -- let me go Yeah, it's 60 months on Count 12 and 36 months on Count 13 to run concurrently. PROBATION OFFICER: 11 12 However, I think you imposed 60 That's correct, your Honor. Thank you. 13 THE COURT: Okay. All right. 14 Mr. Young, do you have something to say? 15 THE DEFENDANT: Yes, sir. I apologize. She already ended it. I 16 would greatly appreciate it if you could recommend I go to 17 some type of facility where I can get to the form and get my 18 hips, legs, and waist fixed. 19 wrong. 20 not meant to be disrespectful on posture or anything like that 21 but my leg, if you lift my pants leg up, you can see that -- 23 That's all right. It was I'll make those recommendations for you. THE DEFENDANT: 24 25 I never took notice to my posture up there. THE COURT: 22 I'm not exactly for sure what's I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you. Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 47 of 49 PageID #: 12011 48 1 THE COURT: 2 COURTROOM DEPUTY: 3 (Whereupon, the proceedings were adjourned at 12:08 4 5 All right. Thank you. All rise, please. p.m.) - - - 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 48 of 49 PageID #: 12012 49 1 REPORTERS CERTIFICATE 2 3 4 I, Wynette C. Blathers, Official Court Reporter for 5 the United States District Court for the Middle District of 6 Tennessee, with offices at Nashville, do hereby certify: 7 That I reported on the Stenograph machine the 8 proceedings held in open court on August 28, 2014, in the 9 matter of UNITED STATES OF AMERICA V. CHRIS YOUNG, Case No. 10 3:11-CR-00012-27; that said proceedings in connection with the 11 hearing were reduced to typewritten form by me; and that the 12 foregoing transcript (Pages 1 through 48) is a true and 13 accurate record of the proceedings. 14 This the 19th day of September, 2014. 15 16 17 18 19 _______________________________ /s/ Wynette C. Blathers, RMR, CRR Official Court Reporter 20 21 22 23 24 25 Case 3:11-cr-00012 Document 2325 Filed 09/19/14 Page 49 of 49 PageID #: 12013