United States Fifth Circuit

Defendants' convictions for hostage taking and smuggling of illegal aliens are affirmed over claims of error regarding sufficiency of the evidence, denials of motions to suppress, improper voir dire, and jury instructions. Further, one defendant's sentence is modified on two counts, but otherwise the sentences are affirmed.

Appellate Information

• Decided 09/20/2006
• Published 09/21/2006

Judges

• CARL E. STEWART, Circuit Judge:, Before SMITH, WIENER, and STEWART, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Fifth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• James Lee Turner and Renata Ann Gowie (argued), Asst. U.S. Attys., Houston, TX, for U.S., Adrian Almaguer (argued), Houston, TX, for Ibarra-Zelaya., Lee Wilson (argued), Garcia & Wilson, Houston, TX, for Linares-Tabora., Yolanda Daniel Coroy (argued), Houston, TX, for Peralta-Ramirez., Kevin Matthew Hall (argued), Houston, TX, for Gutierrez-Andrade., Mervyn M. Mosbacker, Jr. (argued), Mosbacker Law Office, Houston, TX, for Guardado-Mezen., Marjorie A. Meyers, Fed. Pub. Def., Michael L. Herman (argued), Houston, TX, for Geovany-Mezen.