United States v. Ortiz-Arozena

* Pursuant to 5TH CIR. R. 47.5, the court has determined that
this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except
under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH CIR. R. 47.5.4.
United States Court of Appeals
Fifth Circuit
F I L E D
February 24, 2006
Charles R. Fulbruge III
Clerk
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT
No. 05-40666
Conference Calendar
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
versus
JAVIER ORTIZ-AROZENA,
Defendant-Appellant.
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Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Southern District of Texas
USDC No. 1:04-CR-911-1
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Before GARZA, DENNIS, and PRADO, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:*
Javier Ortiz-Arozena appeals his guilty-plea conviction for
being an alien present in the United States after deportation.
The district court sentenced Ortiz to sixty-two months of
imprisonment to be followed by a three-year term of supervised
release. He challenges the constitutionality of 8 U.S.C.
§ 1326(b)’s treatment of prior felony and aggravated felony
convictions as sentencing factors rather than elements of the
offense that must be found by a jury in light of Apprendi v. New
Jersey, 530 U.S. 466 (2000).

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No. 05-40666
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Ortiz’s constitutional challenge is foreclosed by
Almendarez-Torres v. United States, 523 U.S. 224, 235 (1998).
Although Ortiz contends that Almendarez-Torres was incorrectly
decided and that a majority of the Supreme Court would overrule
Almendarez-Torres in light of Apprendi, we have repeatedly
rejected such arguments on the basis that Almendarez-Torres
remains binding. See United States v. Garza-Lopez, 410 F.3d 268,
276 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 126 S. Ct. 298 (2005). Ortiz
properly concedes that his argument is foreclosed in light of
Almendarez-Torres and circuit precedent, but he raises it here to
preserve it for further review.
The district court’s judgment is AFFIRMED.

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