United States v. Gonzalez-Huerta

403 F.3d 727, 2005 U.S. App. LEXIS 5705, 2005 WL 807008
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
DecidedApril 8, 2005
Docket04-2045
StatusPublished
Cited by730 cases

This text of 403 F.3d 727 (United States v. Gonzalez-Huerta) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Gonzalez-Huerta, 403 F.3d 727, 2005 U.S. App. LEXIS 5705, 2005 WL 807008 (10th Cir. 2005).

Opinions

TACHA, Chief Circuit Judge.

Defendant-Appellant Sergio Gonzalez-Huerta pleaded guilty to illegal reentry by a deported alien in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1326(a)-(b)(2). The District Court sentenced Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta to 57 months’ incarceration. In determining Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta’s sentence, the court did not rely upon judge-found facts, but it did apply mandatorily the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines (2003) (“Guidelines”). Mr. Gonzalez argues for the first time on appeal that this mandatory application of the Guidelines constitutes reversible error under United States v. Booker, — U.S. -, 125 S.Ct. 738, 160 L.Ed.2d 621 (2005). Because Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta did not raise this argument in the District Court, this appeal is reviewed only for plain error. See Fed.R.Crim.P. 52(b). We take jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 and 18 U.S.C. § 3742(a)(1), hold that the fourth prong of plain-error review is not satisfied, and AFFIRM.

I. BACKGROUND

In 1994, Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta was convicted of committing burglary in California. After serving a prison term, he was deported to Mexico in 2000. In May 2003, Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta was arrested in New Mexico for possession of a controlled substance. While Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta was being held in a New Mexico jail, United States Border Patrol Agents discovered that he had reentered the country illegally. The Government indicted Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta for unlawfully reentering the United States after deportation following an aggravated felony. See 8 U.S.C. § 1326(a)-(b)(2). By statute, this offense is punishable by a maximum sentence of 20 years, with no mandatory minimum sentence. 8 U.S.C. § 1326(b)(2). Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta pleaded guilty without entering into a plea agreement.

With the exception of its findings regarding Mr. GonzalezAHuerta’s prior convictions, the District Court calculated Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta’s sentencing range under the Guidelines without making findings of fact beyond those admitted by Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta. In so doing, the District Court concluded that Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta had an offense level 21 and a criminal history category IV. The court then mandatorily applied the Guidelines, which set Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta’s sentence range at 57-71 months’ imprisonment, and imposed a 57-month sentence. While Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta did not object to the mandatory application of the Guidelines at sentencing, he did timely appeal his sentence.

While this case was pending on appeal, the Supreme Court issued its opinion in Blakely v. Washington, — U.S. -, 124 S.Ct. 2531, 2537, 159 L.Ed.2d 403 (2004), which held that in a state prosecution the Sixth Amendment requires that the maximum permissible sentence in a given case must be determined solely by reference to “facts reflected in the jury verdict or admitted by the defendant.” That is to say, the Court held that mandatory sentencing guidelines, which require the sentencing judge to make findings of fact, may not be used to increase a defendant’s sentence in a state prosecution even though this enhanced sentence falls within the statutory sentencing range. In January of this year, the Court held that Blakely applies to [731]*731federal sentences as well. Booker, 125 S.Ct. at 749-50.

On appeal, Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta argues for the first time that Booker is grounds for remanding his case for resentencing. We set this case for en banc review sua sponte to resolve this matter of great importance. See 28 U.S.C. § 46(c). We requested supplemental briefing from the parties on an expedited basis and received an amicus curiae brief from the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. The question being fully argued, we turn to the single substantial issue in this appeal: On plain-error review, does the District Court’s mandatory application of the Guidelines constitute reversible error when the District Court relied solely upon Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta’s prior convictions and admitted facts in determining his maximum sentence? 1

II. DISCUSSION

A.

In Booker, the Court “reaffirm[ed its] holding in Apprendi: Any fact (other than a prior conviction) which is necessary to support a sentence exceeding the maximum authorized by the facts established by a plea of guilty or a jury verdict must be admitted by the defendant or proved to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt.” Booker, 125 S.Ct. at 756. As a result, the Court held that mandatory application of the Guidelines violates the Sixth Amendment when judge-found facts, other than those of prior convictions, are employed to enhance a sentence. The Court constructed a unique remedy to this constitutional infirmity. It severed two provisions of the Sentencing Reform Act of 1984, codified at 18 U.S.C. § 3551 et seq. Namely, it excised 18 U.S.C. § 3553(b)(1), which made the imposition of a Guidelines sentence mandatory in the vast majority of cases, and those portions of 18 U.S.C. § 3742(e) that established standards of review on appeal. Booker, 125 S.Ct. at 764. Henceforth, courts are still required to consider the Guidelines in determining sentences, but they are not required to impose a sentence within the Guidelines range. Id.

As a result, there are two distinct types of error that a court sentencing prior to Booker could make. First, a court could err by relying upon judge-found facts, other than those of prior convictions, to enhance a defendant’s sentence mandatorily. As Booker makes clear, the Sixth Amendment prohibits this practice. 125 S.Ct. at 756. As a matter of convenience, we will refer to such an error as a “constitutional Booker error.” Second, a sentencing court could err by applying the Guidelines in a mandatory fashion, as opposed to a discretionary fashion, even though the resulting [732]*732sentence was calculated solely upon facts that were admitted by the defendant, found by the jury, or based upon the fact of a prior conviction. Id. at 769. While this type of sentence does not violate the Sixth Amendment, id., such a sentence is nonetheless impermissible because the Court severed the portion of the Sentencing Reform Act that required the mandatory application of the Guidelines, id. at 764. We will refer to this second type of error as a “non-constitutional Booker error.”

B.

This case presents us with a non-constitutional Booker error.2 The record establishes that, except for the fact of Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta’s prior convictions, the District Court relied solely upon facts admitted by Mr. Gonzalez-Huerta in calculating his maximum sentence.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

United States v. Martinez
88 F.4th 1310 (Tenth Circuit, 2023)
United States v. Bacon
Tenth Circuit, 2020
United States v. Gonzalez-Fierro
949 F.3d 512 (Tenth Circuit, 2020)
United States v. Fisher
Tenth Circuit, 2019
United States v. Magnan
Tenth Circuit, 2018
United States v. Waldo
646 F. App'x 657 (Tenth Circuit, 2016)
United States v. Iverson
Tenth Circuit, 2016
United States v. Cooke
635 F. App'x 524 (Tenth Circuit, 2015)
United States v. Madrid
805 F.3d 1204 (Tenth Circuit, 2015)
United States v. Hines
629 F. App'x 820 (Tenth Circuit, 2015)
United States v. Serrano-Rodriguez
626 F. App'x 733 (Tenth Circuit, 2015)
United States v. Sorensen
801 F.3d 1217 (Tenth Circuit, 2015)
United States v. Kalu
791 F.3d 1194 (Tenth Circuit, 2015)
United States v. Allen
610 F. App'x 773 (Tenth Circuit, 2015)
United States v. Dunn
777 F.3d 1171 (Tenth Circuit, 2015)
United States v. Richardson
597 F. App'x 512 (Tenth Circuit, 2015)
United States v. Burns
775 F.3d 1221 (Tenth Circuit, 2014)
United States v. Catrell
774 F.3d 666 (Tenth Circuit, 2014)
United States v. Hood
774 F.3d 638 (Tenth Circuit, 2014)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
403 F.3d 727, 2005 U.S. App. LEXIS 5705, 2005 WL 807008, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-gonzalez-huerta-ca10-2005.