Felony Firearm Sentence Lowered Due to Virginia Blackmail Law

Virginia common law robbery doesn’t count as a “violent felony” warranting a sentence enhancement under the Armed Career Criminal Act, because it includes the nonviolent offense of robbery by threatening to accuse the victim of unlawful sexual activity, the Fourth Circuit said Thursday.

Terry Antonio White was convicted of being a felon in possession of a firearm. The district court held that White qualified as an armed career criminal based on three prior convictions for violent felonies, and thus imposed the ACCA’s mandatory minimum sentence of 180 months.

White argued that Virginia common law robbery shouldn’t count as a violent ...