United States v. Martin
United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
455 F.3d 1227 (2006)
- Written by Sharon Feldman, JD
Facts
Michael Martin (defendant) was HealthSouth Corporation’s former chief financial officer. At HealthSouth’s chief executive officer’s direction, Martin fraudulently inflated HealthSouth’s earnings to meet projections and Wall Street’s expectations for over three years. When the fraud was exposed, HealthSouth’s stock plummeted, and shareholders lost most of their investments. The stock-value loss was approximately $1.4 billion. Martin pleaded guilty to falsifying books and records, conspiracy to commit securities and mail fraud, and conspiracy to falsify books and records. Martin and the government (plaintiff) agreed that the advisory range under the Sentencing Guidelines was 108 to 135 months and that Martin’s substantial assistance warranted a downward departure under U.S.S.G. § 5K1.1. Martin was sentenced to 60 months’ probation. The government appealed. At resentencing, the government recommended a nine-level departure to 42 months’ imprisonment, but the district court downwardly departed by 23 levels and imposed a seven-day prison term. The government again appealed, arguing the departure and sentence were unreasonable in view of Martin’s role in the fraud.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Hull, J.)
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