United States of America v. Juan Leon-Cordova

NOT FOR PUBLICATION
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
JUAN LEON-CORDOVA,
Defendant-Appellant.
No. 15-50527
D.C. No. 3:15-cr-01494-LAB
MEMORANDUM*
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Southern District of California
Larry A. Burns, District Judge, Presiding
Submitted February 14, 2017**
Before: GOODWIN, FARRIS, and FERNANDEZ, Circuit Judges.
Juan Leon-Cordova appeals from the district court’s judgment and
challenges the 60-month sentence following his jury-trial conviction for being a
removed alien found in the United States, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1326. We
have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291, and we affirm.
* This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent
except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3.
** The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision
without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2).
FILED
FEB 22 2017
MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
U.S. COURT OF APPEALS

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2 15-50527
Leon-Cordova contends that the district court erred by enhancing his
sentence under section § 1326(b). Specifically, he argues that Almendarez-Torres
v. United States, 523 U.S. 224 (1998), which permits an enhancement based on the
existence of a prior felony, is invalid under Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U.S. 466,
490 (2000). As Leon-Cordova acknowledges, this argument is foreclosed. See
United States v. Pacheco-Zepeda, 234 F.3d 411, 414 (9th Cir. 2000) (Apprendi
“unmistakably carved out an exception for ‘prior convictions’ that specifically
preserved the holding of Almendarez-Torres”); see also Alleyne v. United States,
133 S. Ct. 2151, 2160 n.1 (2013) (declining to revisit Almendarez-Torres).
AFFIRMED.

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