## Facts

- Mackenzie Hunter unlawfully sold a handgun to a juvenile.
- Months later, the juvenile used the handgun in a mass shooting at a Salt Lake City shopping center that killed multiple people, including Vanessa Quinn.
- Hunter was federally prosecuted in the District of Utah and pleaded guilty to firearm-related offenses arising from the unlawful transfer/possession.
- Before sentencing, Vanessa Quinn’s parents, Ken and Sue Antrobus, moved under the Crime Victims’ Rights Act (CVRA), 18 U.S.C. § 3771, to have Quinn recognized as a “crime victim” of Hunter’s offense and to exercise CVRA rights, including being heard and seeking restitution.
- The district court denied the CVRA motion, concluding Quinn was not a “crime victim” of Hunter’s offense of conviction.
- The Antrobuses petitioned the Tenth Circuit for CVRA mandamus relief under § 3771(d)(3); the petition was denied.
- After Hunter was sentenced to 15 months’ imprisonment, the Antrobuses filed a notice of appeal challenging both the sentence and the district court’s denial of CVRA relief.
- The United States and Hunter moved to dismiss the appeal for lack of jurisdiction because the Antrobuses were non-parties to the criminal prosecution.

## Issues

1. Whether crime victims who are not parties to a federal criminal case may file a direct, post-judgment appeal challenging the defendant’s sentence and the denial of asserted CVRA rights.
2. Whether the CVRA authorizes a direct appeal by victims, or instead makes mandamus under 18 U.S.C. § 3771(d)(3) the exclusive appellate mechanism for enforcing CVRA rights.

## Decision

- The Tenth Circuit granted the motions to dismiss and dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction.
- The court held that crime victims, as non-parties, may not bring a post-judgment appeal of a criminal sentence or of alleged CVRA violations.
- The court concluded that § 3771(d)(3) provides mandamus as the exclusive method for appellate review of CVRA claims.
- The court did not reach the merits of whether Quinn qualified as a CVRA “victim” or whether any CVRA right was violated.

## Legal Principles

- Only parties (or those who properly become parties) ordinarily may invoke appellate jurisdiction by filing a notice of appeal; crime victims are not made parties to federal criminal prosecutions by the CVRA.
- The CVRA’s enforcement provision, 18 U.S.C. § 3771(d)(3), authorizes victims to seek appellate review through an expedited petition for a writ of mandamus when the district court denies requested relief.
- A statutory mandamus mechanism tailored for appellate review indicates congressional intent to limit review to that mechanism, rather than creating a separate, ordinary right of appeal.
- Allowing non-party, post-judgment victim appeals would threaten the finality of criminal judgments and affect defendants’ sentencing rights in a manner not authorized by statute.

## Conclusion

The Tenth Circuit dismissed the victims’ post-sentencing appeal, holding that the CVRA does not confer a right for non-party victims to directly appeal a criminal sentence or CVRA rulings; victims must pursue appellate enforcement exclusively through mandamus under 18 U.S.C. § 3771(d)(3).


United States v. Hunter, 548 F.3d 1308 (10th Cir. 2008)