context: The definitional framework set forth by the Seventh Circuit in Carey has been adopted to varying degrees by the majority of circuits that have confronted this issue.
citation_a.signal: see
citation_a.identifier: 974 F.2d 25, 26
citation_a.parenthetical: "Although the Guidelines do not define 'aberrant behavior,' we are most certain that it requires more than an act which is merely a first offense or 'out of character' for the defendant ... [as] those considerations are taken into account in calculating the defendant's criminal history category."
citation_a.sentence: See, e.g., United States v. Duerson, 25 F.3d 376, 380 (6th Cir.1994) (“Whether or not the Commission intended only a limited application of the [aberrant behavior] principle, we have no reason to doubt that a district court can give a first offender a prison sentence below the guideline range, as opposed to giving him probation, where the facts justify a finding that his crime truly was a single act of aberrant behavior.”); United States v. Premachandra, 32 F.3d 346, 349 (8th Cir.1994) (“Because the Sentencing Commission did not consider single acts of aberrant behavior when formulating the guidelines, we have recognized that a spontaneous and seemingly thoughtless act may be a basis for departure.”); United States v. Williams, 974 F.2d 25, 26 (5th Cir.1992) (“Although the Guidelines do not define ‘aberrant behavior,’ we are most certain that it requires more than an act which is merely a first offense or ‘out of character’ for the defendant ... [as] those considerations are taken into account in calculating the defendant’s criminal history category.”), cert. denied, 507 U.S. 934, 113 S.Ct. 1320, 122 L.Ed.2d 706 (1993) (citation omitted).
citation_b.signal: but see
citation_b.identifier: 14 F.3d 1438, 1441
citation_b.parenthetical: expanding Carey to hold that "[t]he totality of circumstances must be viewed to see whether the offense fits within [the defendant's] normal conduct or if it is a complete shock and out of character"
citation_b.sentence: But see United States v. Tsosie, 14 F.3d 1438, 1441 (10th Cir.1994) (expanding Carey to hold that “[t]he totality of circumstances must be viewed to see whether the offense fits within [the defendant’s] normal conduct or if it is a complete shock and out of character”).