United States v. Morales-Murguia

Opinion

Case: 25-50780 Document: 59-1 Page: 1 Date Filed: 07/08/2026

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit

____________ United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit

No. 25-50780

FILED July 8, 2026

Summary Calendar ____________ Lyle W. Cayce Clerk

United States of America,

Plaintiff—Appellee,

versus

Jonathan Morales-Murguia,

Defendant—Appellant.

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Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas USDC No. 2:25-CR-863-1

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Before Haynes, Graves, and Ramirez, Circuit Judges. Per Curiam:* Jonathan Morales-Murguia pleaded guilty to illegal reentry into the United States. He contends that his above-guidelines 24-month sentence is substantively unreasonable.

Here, the district court expressly accounted for the guidelines range and justified the upward variance based on Morales-Murguia’s criminal

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*

This opinion is not designated for publication. See 5th Cir. R. 47.5.

Case: 25-50780 Document: 59-1 Page: 2 Date Filed: 07/08/2026

No. 25-50780

history and other 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) factors. See United States v. Woods, 102 F.4th 760, 765 (5th Cir. 2024); United States v. Cortez-Balderas, 74 F.4th 786, 788 (5th Cir. 2023). We conclude that none of those reasons constitute an abuse of discretion. See Woods, 102 F.4th at 765-66; United States v. Guillermo Balleza, 613 F.3d 432, 435 (5th Cir. 2010). As to the extent of the deviation from the guidelines range, we have upheld proportionally greater upward variances. See, e.g., United States v. Rhine, 637 F.3d 525, 528-30 (5th Cir. 2011).

AFFIRMED.