In United States v. Vinge, --- F.4th ---, No. 10300 (9th Cir. 2023), the Court affirmed a sentence for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, in a case in which Daniel Vinge argued that the district court should not have applied the leader-or-organizer enhancement under Section 3B1.1(c) of the Sentencing Guidelines because no evidence suggests that he “exercised control over others” in the organization.
The Court explained: "Because our recent cases have not been entirely clear with respect to the distinction between an organizer and a leader under § 3B1.1(c), we reiterate that the level of control required to be an organizer is only 'the ability and influence necessary to coordinate the activities of others to achieve the desired result.'"
"We thus reiterate that for the organizer enhancement to apply, what is required is 'the necessary influence and ability to coordinate the behavior of others so as to achieve the desired criminal result.' These softer forms of authority or control are sufficient for a determination that a defendant is an organizer."
The Court also rejected Mr. Vinge's other sentencing arguments.
