United States v. Michael Bear

USCA4 Appeal: 24-6759 Doc: 19 Filed: 03/03/2025 Pg: 1 of 3 UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 24-6759 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. MICHAEL DAVID BEAR, Defendant – Appellant. No. 24-6760 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. MICHAEL DAVID BEAR, Defendant - Appellant. Appeals from the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, at Abingdon. James P. Jones, Senior District Judge. (1:06-cr-00018-JPJ-1; 2:05-cr-00029- JPJ-1) Submitted: February 27, 2025 Decided: March 3, 2025 USCA4 Appeal: 24-6759 Doc: 19 Filed: 03/03/2025 Pg: 2 of 3 Before KING and QUATTLEBAUM, Circuit Judges, and TRAXLER, Senior Circuit Judge. Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion. Michael David Bear, Appellant Pro Se. Lena Lockridge Busscher, Assistant United States Attorney, OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY, Abingdon, Virginia, for Appellee. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. 2 USCA4 Appeal: 24-6759 Doc: 19 Filed: 03/03/2025 Pg: 3 of 3 PER CURIAM: Michael David Bear appeals the district court’s order denying his second motion for compassionate release pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A)(i), as amended by the First Step Act of 2018, Pub. L. No. 115-391, § 603(b)(1), 132 Stat. 5194, 5239. Upon review, we discern no abuse of discretion in the district court’s determination that the pertinent 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) sentencing factors weighed against compassionate release. See United States v. Malone, 57 F.4th 167, 172-73 (4th Cir. 2023) (providing standard of review and outlining steps for evaluating compassionate release motions). Accordingly, we deny Bear’s motion for appointment of counsel and affirm the district court’s order. We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before this court and argument would not aid the decisional process. AFFIRMED 3