Conour seeks reconsideration of wire-fraud sentence

Convicted fraudster and former attorney William Conour is arguing that a case decided earlier this year entitles him to an appeal of his entire 10-year sentence for defrauding clients of more than $6.5 million. Conour previously was resentenced, but only to address special conditions of his post-sentence release.

Conour’s 13th attorney of record since he was criminally charged in 2012 with stealing settlement money from three dozen clients also asked the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals to remand the case and order his resentencing to be heard by a different judge.

Michelle L. Jacobs, a private Wisconsin attorney appointed by the court at public expense, filed Conour’s latest appellate brief Wednesday. In it, she argues that United States v. Mobley, 833 F.3d 797 (7th Cir. 2016), holds that a remand in light of United States v. Thompson, 777 F.3d 368 (7th Cir. 2015), requires full resentencing — not just for conditions of post-sentence release as held in Thompson.

In Mobley, the 7th Circuit wrote, “A remand ‘in light of Thompson’ is a remand that vacates the entire sentence and requires full resentencing, unless the opinion and mandate specify otherwise.”

“(T)he procedural posture of this case mirrors Mobley, where the district court failed to consider any new arguments, or allow the defendant to allocate, because it thought it only had the authority to consider the supervised release conditions,” Conour’s attorney argues.  “Conour’s second sentencing hearing did not comport with the requirements of Mobley. His case should be remanded for a complete resentencing.”

District Judge Richard Young in March resentenced Conour to the same 10-year sentence imposed in 2013. He told Conour, who represented himself on resentencing, that other arguments on appeal had been waived and his jurisdiction was limited to reviewing the terms of post-sentence release invalidated by Thompson.

In its 2015 order remanding Conour’s sentence, the 7th Circuit cited a joint motion for summary reversal and remand for resentencing entered into by Conour and the government. It noted Conour “challenges only the district court’s imposition of certain conditions of supervised release and the district court’s allowance of defense counsel’s withdrawal after sentencing.” On remand, Young said his jurisdiction was limited to those issues. Conour now argues Mobely instructs courts on remand to recognize their authority to reconsider all elements of sentencing, even those not previously raised.

Conour’s current appeal before the 7th Circuit is William Conour v. United States, 16-1698. Conour also asks the 7th Circuit to remand the matter to a new judge under Circuit Rule 36. Conour, 69, has a projected release date of March 6, 2022, from the Federal Correctional Institution at Morgantown, West Virginia.