UNITED STATES v. RAMOS (2019)

Roel Ruben Ramos was convicted of possession with the intent to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana and was sentenced to 87 months of imprisonment, to be followed by four years of supervised release. On appeal, he contends that his conviction was not supported by an adequate factual basis because the Government did not meet its obligation to prove that he had knowledge of the quantity of the controlled substance involved in his offense.

As Ramos concedes, his sole appellate argument is foreclosed by United States v. Betancourt, 586 F.3d 303, 308-09 (5th Cir. 2009), which determined that Flores-Figueroa v. United States, 556 U.S. 646, 129 S.Ct. 1886, 173 L.Ed.2d 853 (2009), did not overturn United States v. Gamez-Gonzalez, 319 F.3d 695 (5th Cir. 2003), and that the Government is not required to prove knowledge of the drug quantity as an element of a 21 U.S.C. § 841 offense. The Government thus did not have to prove that Ramos knew the quantity of the controlled substance involved in his offense.

Accordingly, Ramos’s unopposed motion for summary disposition is GRANTED, and the judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED.

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PER CURIAM:* FN* Pursuant to 5th Cir. R. 47.5, the court has determined that this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except under the limited circumstances set forth in 5th Cir. R. 47.5.4.