AND · 18usc924:penalty.discharge
Dean construes discharge mens rea; Alleyne separately controls jury proof of the discharge fact. Dean's pre-Alleyne procedural assumptions do not displace that later constitutional rule.
Exact element source
(iii) if the firearm is discharged, be sentenced to a term of imprisonment of not less than 10 years.Source:
docroot/ir/usc/title18.jsonl#title18_sec924; Unicode character offsets [4996:5097] (end exclusive); SHA-256 899fad466e76614e7f7b0bb794089010ef0af034312bcd194c76394228dbfdc4.Routes and case patterns
| Route | Definition | Merits instance blocks | Distinct merits cases | Examples (up to 3 cases per count group) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| accidental-discharge provisional; provisional (1 case) | Whether the discharge enhancement requires intent to fire (Dean). | 1 Satisfied 1; not satisfied 0; excluded context 1 | 1 | Dean v. United States — 556 U.S. 568 (2009) · Supreme Court of the United States · 2009 — satisfied · law (18usc924: author: Fable · not independently reviewed) · applied/merits · counted Dean v. United States — 556 U.S. 568 (2009) · Supreme Court of the United States · 2009 — not · law (18usc924: author: Fable · not independently reviewed) · applied/dissent · not counted |
How courts decided this element
| Case | Element | Holding and scope | Pattern | Exact source quotations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dean v. United States — 556 U.S. 568 (2009) · Supreme Court of the United States · 2009 — satisfied · law (18usc924: author: Fable · not independently reviewed) | Ten-year discharge minimum | satisfied Counted merits instance applied / merits basis: law; claim: (c)(1)(A)(iii) That the gun went off, apparently by accident, was undisputed; the only question was legal (no mens rea for the discharge tier), and the enhanced sentence was affirmed. The cuts-against facts matter only on the rejected intent reading (surprise) and to the dissent (no harm); the Court holds both irrelevant. The enhancement was applied by the sentencing judge as a sentencing factor, as then permitted. | discharge/accidental-during-robbery | He grabbed bills with his left hand, holding the gun in his right.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/us_556.jsonl#/us/556/0568-01; Unicode character offsets [999:1065] (end exclusive); SHA-256 8dcdaa28023fec01d4ddfa8fcffe04c5ce5ef1a2e833faa40777b9e858bdfb6b.As he was collecting the money, the gun discharged, leaving a bullet hole in the partition between two stations.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/us_556.jsonl#/us/556/0568-01; Unicode character offsets [1138:1250] (end exclusive); SHA-256 8dcdaa28023fec01d4ddfa8fcffe04c5ce5ef1a2e833faa40777b9e858bdfb6b.Witnesses later testified that he seemed surprised that the gun had gone off.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/us_556.jsonl#/us/556/0568-01; Unicode character offsets [1297:1374] (end exclusive); SHA-256 8dcdaa28023fec01d4ddfa8fcffe04c5ce5ef1a2e833faa40777b9e858bdfb6b.No one was hurt.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/us_556.jsonl#/us/556/0568-01; Unicode character offsets [1375:1391] (end exclusive); SHA-256 8dcdaa28023fec01d4ddfa8fcffe04c5ce5ef1a2e833faa40777b9e858bdfb6b.It is whether something happened— not how or why it happened — that matters.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/us_556.jsonl#/us/556/0568-01; Unicode character offsets [4987:5063] (end exclusive); SHA-256 8dcdaa28023fec01d4ddfa8fcffe04c5ce5ef1a2e833faa40777b9e858bdfb6b.The 10-year mandatory minimum applies if a gun is discharged in the course of a violent or drug trafficking crime, whether on purpose or by accident.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/us_556.jsonl#/us/556/0568-01; Unicode character offsets [15197:15346] (end exclusive); SHA-256 8dcdaa28023fec01d4ddfa8fcffe04c5ce5ef1a2e833faa40777b9e858bdfb6b.The parties disagree over whether § 924(c)(l)(A)(iii) contains a requirement that the defendant intend to discharge the firearm. We hold that it does not.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/us_556.jsonl#/us/556/0568-01; Unicode character offsets [3778:3932] (end exclusive); SHA-256 8dcdaa28023fec01d4ddfa8fcffe04c5ce5ef1a2e833faa40777b9e858bdfb6b.The judgment of the Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit is affirmed.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/us_556.jsonl#/us/556/0568-01; Unicode character offsets [15347:15421] (end exclusive); SHA-256 8dcdaa28023fec01d4ddfa8fcffe04c5ce5ef1a2e833faa40777b9e858bdfb6b. |
| Dean v. United States — 556 U.S. 568 (2009) · Supreme Court of the United States · 2009 — not · law (18usc924: author: Fable · not independently reviewed) | Ten-year discharge minimum | not Excluded from merits counts applied / dissent basis: law; claim: (c)(1)(A)(iii); opinion: Stevens, J., dissenting; subject: opinion=Stevens, J., dissenting Stevens: escalating tiers track culpability and the mens rea presumption applies to mandatory minimums. A separate Breyer dissent (rule of lenity) reaches the same result and is not quoted. | discharge/accidental-during-robbery | Absent a clear indication that Congress intended to create a strict-liability enhancement, courts should presume that a provision that mandates enhanced criminal penalties requires proof of intent.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/us_556.jsonl#/us/556/0568-01; Unicode character offsets [22499:22696] (end exclusive); SHA-256 8dcdaa28023fec01d4ddfa8fcffe04c5ce5ef1a2e833faa40777b9e858bdfb6b.Accordingly, I would hold that the Court of Appeals erred in concluding that petitioner could be sentenced under §924(c)(l)(A)(iii) absent evidence that he intended to discharge his gun.Source: docroot/ir/caselaw/us_556.jsonl#/us/556/0568-01; Unicode character offsets [16351:16537] (end exclusive); SHA-256 8dcdaa28023fec01d4ddfa8fcffe04c5ce5ef1a2e833faa40777b9e858bdfb6b. |
Court interpretations
interpretation
It does not require that the discharge be done knowingly or intentionally, or otherwise contain words of limitation.
Dean v. United States — 556 U.S. 568 (2009) · Supreme Court of the United States · 2009 (18usc924: author: Fable · not independently reviewed)
It does not require that the discharge be done knowingly or intentionally, or otherwise contain words of limitation.Source:
docroot/ir/caselaw/us_556.jsonl#/us/556/0568-01; Unicode character offsets [4170:4286] (end exclusive); SHA-256 8dcdaa28023fec01d4ddfa8fcffe04c5ce5ef1a2e833faa40777b9e858bdfb6b.Dean construes discharge mens rea; Alleyne separately controls jury proof of the discharge fact. Dean's pre-Alleyne procedural assumptions do not displace that later constitutional rule.
not-required
Separate intent to discharge (Dean, 556 U.S. 568, 572 (2009)); the underlying firearm offense must still be proved.
No source quotation recorded.