United States v. Castellon-Aragon

Defendant appealed his sentence after pleading guilty to illegal reentry after having been previously removed from the United States. The court concluded that the district court did not plainly err in applying the base offense level enhancement deriving from the classification of his prior California conviction for possession of a controlled substance for sale as a drug trafficking offense where it was an aggravated felony 8 U.S.C. 1326(b)(2). State court documents reasonably indicated the absence of a superseding charging instrument, and because the Government cites California authority that offers support for its interpretation of the state proceedings, the court found no plain error, clear or obvious, committed by the trial court. Accordingly, the court affirmed the sentence and did not reach defendant's remaining claims. View "United States v. Castellon-Aragon" on Justia Law