United States v. Jerid Hinz
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
Date FiledAugust 13, 2026
Docket25-2118
StatusPublished
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Full Opinion
In the
United States Court of Appeals
For the Seventh Circuit
____________________
No. 25-2118
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
JERID HINZ,
Defendant-Appellant.
____________________
Appeal from the United States District Court for the
Western District of Wisconsin.
No. 21-cr-115-jdp-1 — James D. Peterson, Chief Judge.
____________________
ARGUED JUNE 2, 2026 — DECIDED AUGUST 13, 2026
____________________
Before JACKSON-AKIWUMI, LEE, and TAIBLESON, Circuit
Judges.
PER CURIAM. After Jerid Hinz violated the conditions of his
supervised release, the district court revoked his supervision
and imposed 24 months’ imprisonment without a new term
of supervised release to follow. In its subsequent written
order, the court imposed a condition requiring that Hinz “is
to be registered with local law enforcement agencies and the
state attorney general before his release from confinement.”
Hinz appeals, contending that the court relied on inaccurate
2 No. 25-2118
information at sentencing and that it did not have authority
to impose the condition on his release. Though we disagree
that the court relied on inaccurate information in sentencing
Hinz, we agree with Hinz that the court exceeded its authority
by imposing the condition upon his release. We therefore
modify the judgment to remove the registration requirement
and, as modified, affirm.
I. Background
Following his conviction for distributing
methamphetamine, 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(l), (b)(l)(C), Jerid Hinz
was sentenced to 18 months’ imprisonment followed by a
five-year term of supervised release. Hinz completed his term
of imprisonment and was released in June 2024. The court
revoked his supervision on two occasions, the latter of which
is the subject of this appeal.
The first revocation occurred in September 2024 after the
court found that Hinz had violated conditions requiring him
to abstain from using and possessing illegal controlled
substances and to participate in substance abuse treatment,
report for drug testing, and maintain lawful employment. The
court, noting that Hinz had been arrested in Wisconsin on
August 1, 2024, and charged with resisting an officer and
possessing narcotics (among other things), see Wisconsin v.
Hinz, No. 2024CF001839 (Dane Cnty. Cir. Ct. Aug. 2, 2024),
imposed three months’ imprisonment and four years’
supervised release. Hinz served the prison term and was
released in December 2024.
In February 2025, Hinz’s probation officer filed a petition
alleging new violations: On two occasions in December 2024
and January 2025, Hinz tested positive for methamphetamine
and admitted to using it; he once attempted to provide fake
No. 25-2118 3
urine to pass a drug test; and on other occasions, Hinz did not
report for drug testing.
The officer also alleged that Hinz violated the conditions
prohibiting him from committing another crime and
possessing a gun or ammunition. The officer alleged that
police in Madison, Wisconsin, arrested Hinz on February 15,
2025, following a report that he fired a gun at an unknown
male outside Hinz’s apartment, striking the man in the torso.
The man survived and identified Hinz as the shooter,
prompting police to search Hinz’s apartment where they
found prescription pills and a handgun. Though Hinz was not
home during the search, police later located him at a nearby
hotel, arrested him, and discovered a baggie of
methamphetamine in his pocket. Dane County prosecutors
charged him only with felony bail jumping and possessing
methamphetamine. See Wisconsin v. Hinz, No. 2025CF000445
(Dane Cnty. Cir. Ct. Feb. 18, 2025). On June 5, 2025, these new
charges were dismissed but read in at sentencing for the 2024
state case where Hinz had agreed to plead guilty. See id.
In response to the petition to revoke his supervision, Hinz
admitted that he violated conditions requiring him to: refrain
from using or possessing any controlled substance; report to
his probation officer and complete written reports; seek and
maintain lawful employment; and refrain from committing
another crime, though he did not identify a specific offense.
Hinz denied having a gun. He requested a sentence of one
year and one day.
At the revocation hearing on June 23, 2025, the court
acknowledged that Hinz admitted to certain violations and
sought to clarify what new offenses Hinz had committed. The
government pointed to Hinz’s 2024 state offenses, but the
court recognized correctly that those offenses were not new
4 No. 25-2118
because Hinz committed them before his first revocation
hearing. Defense counsel explained that the new charges were
from the 2025 state case, and the court recognized that the
charges—bail jumping and possession of
methamphetamine—had been dismissed but read in at
sentencing in the 2024 state case. When pressed, defense
counsel admitted that the court could consider those charges.
The court then recognized there was an ongoing dispute
about “the charged criminal conduct” related to the shooting
and the possession of a gun, and that Hinz denied possessing
or firing a gun. With that sorted, the court set the allegations
related to the shooting aside.
The government confirmed it was pursuing violations
based only on the conduct Hinz admitted to and—because of
Hinz’s positive drug tests and possession of a controlled
substance—asked for the maximum term of two years’
imprisonment. The government explained that Hinz had not
participated in programming and that his conduct (including
in both state cases) was “fairly serious.” Regarding Hinz’s
alleged possession of a gun and the shooting incident, the
government said it was preparing to bring a gun trafficking
charge to a grand jury in the next few months and suggested
that, given the escalating nature of his conduct, Hinz should
“be incapacitated” to protect himself and others.
At the close of the revocation hearing, the court
pronounced its sentence: 24 months’ imprisonment with no
supervised release to follow. The court explained that it had
reviewed Hinz’s original presentence report and considered
his history of mental health struggles and recidivism. The
court calculated a policy-statement advisory range of 21 to
27 months based on the most serious infraction, a grade B
violation, and Hinz’s criminal history category of VI. And the
court recognized that the maximum term of reimprisonment
No. 25-2118 5
was 24 months. See 18 U.S.C. § 3583(e)(3). In imposing that
maximum term, the court commented that Hinz’s prior
sentences were lenient. “Even setting aside the allegations
that aren’t really at issue here,” the court remarked, Hinz’s
violations were “very serious.” The court further observed
that Hinz “has a history of becoming violent when he’s not in
treatment,” and his resistance to supervision posed a risk to
himself and to the public.
Three days after the hearing, the court issued a written
order. The order first specified that Hinz had violated the
mandatory condition prohibiting him from committing
another offense and possessing a gun or ammunition. The
order explained that Hinz also “faces new charges” but
because he had not stipulated to the underlying conduct, the
court would “not consider it.” The order then detailed the
alleged shooting incident, the search of Hinz’s apartment, and
his arrest at the hotel, which resulted in the charges for bail
jumping and possessing methamphetamine. Those charges,
the order clarified, had been dismissed and read in during
Hinz’s sentencing in the 2024 state case. The order noted that
Hinz had not been charged in relation to the shooting or the
prohibited items police recovered from his apartment.
Likewise, the order stated that the government was not
pursuing alleged violations related to the shooting, and the
court would not consider the allegations. Lastly, the order
detailed Hinz’s stipulated violations, concluded that those
violations warranted revocation, and declared that Hinz “is
to be registered with local law enforcement agencies and the
state attorney general before his release from confinement.”
II. Discussion
On appeal, Hinz raises two challenges to his sentence.
First, he argues the court erred by: (1) sentencing him for
6 No. 25-2118
violating the condition of his release prohibiting him from
using or possessing a gun, even though he disputed the
allegation and the government did not pursue that violation;
and (2) by relying on unproven allegations that he had been
violent, even though the government presented no evidence
of violent behavior. Second, Hinz argues that the court
exceeded its authority by ordering him to “be registered”
with Wisconsin officials upon his release from prison when
the court did not impose another term of supervised release.
This court reviews de novo constitutional challenges to
revocation proceedings. United States v. Harris, 118 F.4th 875,
885 (7th Cir. 2024). “In general, we review the revocation of
supervised release for abuse of discretion, and we review the
district court’s factual findings supporting that revocation for
clear error.” United States v. Perez, 99 F.4th 972, 976 (7th Cir.
2024) (quoting United States v. Patlan, 31 F.4th 552, 556
(7th Cir. 2022)).
The Fifth Amendment guarantees a convicted defendant
the due process right to be sentenced based on accurate and
reliable information. United States v. Jones, 56 F.4th 455, 508
(7th Cir. 2022) (citing United States v. Tucker, 404 U.S. 443, 448–
49 (1972)). A court that bases a sentence on clearly erroneous
facts commits a “significant procedural error.” United States v.
Swartz, 145 F.4th 727, 730 (7th Cir. 2025) (quoting Gall v.
United States, 552 U.S. 38, 51 (2007)). To successfully challenge
a sentence on this ground, Hinz must show that the court
relied on false information. United States v. Miller, 900 F.3d
509, 513 (7th Cir. 2018). Reliance occurs when a court pays
“explicit attention” to the misinformation, “founds its
sentence at least in part on it, or gives specific consideration
to the misinformation before imposing sentence.” Id. (quoting
United States v. Chatman, 805 F.3d 840, 844 (7th Cir. 2015)).
No. 25-2118 7
Although the district court’s order incorrectly stated that
Hinz violated the gun-related conditions of his supervision,
the hearing transcript and the order as a whole demonstrate
that the court did not rely on that conduct when sentencing
Hinz. At the hearing, the court confirmed that Hinz admitted
only to violating conditions related to using or possessing a
controlled substance, failing to report to his probation officer,
failing to maintain lawful employment, and committing
another crime. Regarding Hinz’s admission that he
committed another crime, there was some initial confusion
about which offense Hinz committed because the state cases
from 2024 and 2025 had been resolved together. But the court
concluded correctly that Hinz had admitted to—and the court
could consider—the charges from the 2025 state case
involving bail jumping and possession of methamphetamine
even though they had been dismissed. See U.S.S.G. § 7C1.1
App. Note 1 (violation may be charged whether or not
defendant has been subject of a separate federal, state, or local
prosecution for such conduct, and the grade of violation
depends on defendant’s actual conduct).
We are also assured that the court was not confused about
Hinz’s position on the shooting incident or gun possession.
The court’s statements at the hearing confirm its
understanding that Hinz did not admit those alleged
violations. Twice the court stated that it set aside the
allegations of gun-related conduct, and it confirmed that the
government was pursuing violations based only on Hinz’s
admissions.
Hinz asserts that the written order’s statement that he
faced “new charges” but had not admitted to the “underlying
conduct” is evidence of the court’s reliance on inaccurate
information. He argues that the court’s ambiguous reference
followed by a discussion of the shooting incident and the
8 No. 25-2118
prohibited items found in his apartment suggests that the
court speculated, or was confused, about whether Hinz was
facing new charges for the gun-related conduct.
But the court’s written order later recognized that Hinz
was not charged in relation “to his alleged role in the
February 15, 2025, shooting incident” or the seizure of
prohibited items from his apartment. The order also stated
that, because the government did not pursue those alleged
violations, it would not consider them. And these written
statements are consistent with the district court’s oral
statements at the hearing that Hinz had not admitted to any
conduct related to the shooting, and that it would not
consider the incident. Indeed, at the end of the court’s written
order, it summarized that the basis for its decision to revoke
was the stipulated violations, highlighting that Hinz’s
multiple instances of methamphetamine possession and
refusals to comply with drug testing mandated revocation.
Hinz next argues that the court relied on unproven
conduct to conclude that he was “violent when he’s not in
treatment” because the government did not submit any such
evidence. But when deciding whether to revoke supervision
and require reimprisonment, a court may consider, among
other factors, the defendant’s history and characteristics.
18 U.S.C. § 3583(e) (citing 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)(1)). And
generally, a “sentencing judge may rely on a presentence
report if it ‘is well-supported and appears reliable.’” United
States v. Marks, 864 F.3d 575, 580 (7th Cir. 2017) (quoting
United States v. Black, 636 F.3d 893, 897 (7th Cir. 2011)).
Hinz speculates that the court relied on the gun-related
allegations to conclude that he was violent, but we are not
convinced. The court stated that it reviewed the PSR from
Hinz’s underlying federal conviction, which included Hinz’s
No. 25-2118 9
statements to the probation officer that he had been
prescribed medications largely to “suppress his violent
behavior,” and that he is “easily agitated, irritable, and
violent” without them. The PSR also highlighted that during
a competency evaluation, Hinz recounted to a psychologist
his “history of anger, irritability, violent impulses, and
hostility.” Hinz does not argue that his previous statements
were inaccurate or unreliable. His speculation that the court
improperly relied on conduct that he explicitly denied or on
the government’s representation that it would bring charges
for gun trafficking is not compelled by the record.
Finally, Hinz contends that the district court exceeded its
authority by imposing a condition on his release that he “is to
be registered with local law enforcement agencies and the
state attorney general before his release from confinement.”
He argues that this condition is improper because he faces no
term of supervision following his release.
By imposing the registration requirement here, the district
court exceeded its authority. Aside from conditions of
supervised release, a court may not “impose restrictions on a
defendant, effective after he completes the prison term to
which the judge sentenced him.” United States v. Zamudio, 718
F.3d 989, 990 (7th Cir. 2013). Given that Hinz faces no term of
supervised release after he is released from prison, we see no
authority for the district court to impose a registration
requirement. To the extent that the requirement is meant to
trigger the Bureau of Prisons’ notification obligation in
18 U.S.C. § 4042(b)(1), we likewise see no basis for its
inclusion. Hinz has been convicted of a “drug trafficking
crime,” so the Bureau might be required to notify local, state,
and tribal authorities were Hinz “released on supervised
release.” 18 U.S.C. § 4042(b)(1), (3)(A). But Hinz is not being
released to supervision. And, in any event, whether the
10 No. 25-2118
notification requirement applies is a determination best left to
the Bureau. See id. §§ 3621, 3624 (discussing Bureau’s
responsibility to administer sentences and manage a
prisoner’s release).
In closing, we note that Hinz says that district courts in the
Western District of Wisconsin regularly impose this
requirement on prisoners who, like him, are not facing a term
of supervised release. By our count, we have identified 20
such instances. We caution that the inclusion of this
requirement absent a term of supervised release is outside the
district court’s authority.
Because the district court exceeded its authority in
imposing the registration requirement, we STRIKE it from the
judgment. As modified, the judgment is AFFIRMED.