United States v. Randy Oliver

── United States v. Randy Oliver ── Court: Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit Date: May 05, 2026 Category: General NOT RECOMMENDED FOR PUBLICATION File Name: 26a0203n.06 No. 25-5842 FILED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS May 05, 2026 FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT KELLY L. STEPHENS, Clerk ) UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, ) Plaintiff-Appellee, ) ON APPEAL FROM THE ) UNITED STATES DISTRICT v. ) COURT FOR THE WESTERN ) DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE RANDY OLIVER, ) Defendant-Appellant. ) OPINION ) Before: MOORE, WHITE, and THAPAR, Circuit Judges. HELENE N. WHITE, Circuit Judge. Defendant-Appellant Randy Oliver challenges the substantive reasonableness of his 151-month sentence imposed after he pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, both in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1). We AFFIRM. I. On May 30, 2023, a confidential informant identified Randy Oliver1 as a distributor of cocaine, methamphetamine, and fentanyl in the Oakhaven neighborhood of Memphis, Tennessee. Between late May and July 2023, the confidential informant and an undercover ATF agent arranged four buys of controlled substances from Oliver; three involved cocaine, and one involved both cocaine and fentanyl. During these transactions, Oliver discussed future drug sales and expressed an interest in purchasing an assault rifle or a Glock firearm. Oliver was arrested at the 1 In his change of plea hearing, Oliver advised the district court that his last name is actually “Newberry.” However, because Oliver’s appeal brief continues to refer to him as “Oliver,” we do the same. No. 25-5842, United States v. Oliver final controlled buy on July 20, 2023. That same day, a search of his residence executed pursuant to a search warrant recovered drug paraphernalia, including a digital scale and a razor blade with a white powdery substance. In total, the four transactions involved 130.72 grams of cocaine and 21.62 grams of fentanyl.2 Oliver was charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, both in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1). He pleaded guilty to both counts. In the presentence report (“PSR”), the probation officer determined that Oliver was a career offender because he was being sentenced for controlled substances offenses and he had at least two prior felony convictions for either a crime of violence or a controlled substance offense.3 As a result, Oliver’s base offense level was enhanced from 22 to 32. After subtracting three levels for acceptance of responsibility, Oliver’s total offense level was 29. Although Oliver’s criminal-history score of nine established a criminal-history category of IV, his career-offender status placed him in criminal-history category VI. With Oliver’s total offense level of 29 and level VI criminal-history category, the sentencing Guidelines provided a range of 151 to 188 months’ imprisonment. In a position paper submitted before sentencing, Oliver objected to the application of the career-offende