For purposes of United States Sentencing Guidelines (“U.S.S.G.” or “Guidelines”) § 4B1.2(b), “[t]he term ‘controlled substance offense’ means an offense under federal or state law . . . that prohibits . . . distribution . . . of a controlled substance.” (emphasis added).
This case presents the question of how to define “controlled substance” in § 4B1.2(b): Does that term include only substances controlled by federal law under the Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”)? Or does it also include substances regulated by state law but not by federal law?
Because we find that “controlled substance” refers exclusively to substances controlled by the CSA, we VACATE the judgment of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York (Dora L. Irizarry, Chief Judge) and REMAND for resentencing
August 2018