United States Ninth Circuit

In this illegal-reentry case in which the district court enhanced the sentence after finding that the defendant’s prior conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm under California Penal Code section 12021(a)(1) qualified as an aggravated felony under U.S.S.G. section 2L1.2(b)(1)(C), the sentence is reversed and remanded for resentencing where: 1) the categorical match analysis applied in the immigration context in US v. Aguilera-Rios applies in the sentencing context; and 2) California does prosecute cases involving antique firearms under section 12021(a)(1), and the modified categorical approach is inapplicable because the definition of a firearm in the California Penal Code is not divisible.

Appellate Information

• Decided 10/20/2014
• Published 10/20/2014

Judges

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel