United States v. Sierra-Cruz

Opinion

Case: 25-50669 Document: 59-1 Page: 1 Date Filed: 08/05/2026

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit

____________ FILED August 5, 2026

No. 25-50669

Lyle W. Cayce

Summary Calendar Clerk

____________

United States of America,

Plaintiff—Appellee,

versus

Johes David Sierra-Cruz,

Defendant—Appellant.

______________________________

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas USDC No. 2:25-CR-34-1

______________________________

Before Smith, Stewart, and Oldham, Circuit Judges. Per Curiam:* Johes Sierra-Cruz appeals his 42-month sentence for illegal reentry in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1326(a). He maintains the above-guidelines sentence is substantively unreasonable.

Assuming, without deciding, that Sierra-Cruz preserved his challenge regarding substantive reasonableness, see United States v. Navarro-Jusino, 993 F.3d 360, 362 n.2 (5th Cir. 2021), the district court did not abuse its

*

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

Case: 25-50669 Document: 59-1 Page: 2 Date Filed: 08/05/2026

No. 25-50669

discretion by varying upward based on Sierra-Cruz’s criminal history and characteristics, the need to afford adequate deterrence to criminal conduct, and the need to protect the public from future crimes by Sierra-Cruz, see United States v. Woods, 102 F.4th 760, 765–66 (5th Cir. 2024); 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a). The sentence is well below the statutory maximum, and we have upheld proportionally greater variances. See 8 U.S.C. § 1326(b)(2); United States v. Key, 599 F.3d 469, 475–76 (5th Cir. 2010).

AFFIRMED.