United States Ninth Circuit

Imposition of an 18-month sentence on defendant, following his guilty plea to one count of being a deported alien found in the United States after removal, is affirmed, where: 1) under the modified categorical approach, defendant's prior conviction for possession of cocaine for sale in violation of California Health and Safety Code section 11351 was a "drug trafficking offense" under U.S.S.G. section 2L1.2(b)(1)(A), as the criminal complaint specified in Count 1 that defendant possessed or purchased cocaine, and the abstract of judgment stated that defendant pleaded guilty to Count 1; and 2) the modified categorical approach was proper because section 11351 is divisible within the meaning of Descamps v. United States.

Appellate Information

• Decided 11/07/2014
• Published 11/07/2014

Judges

• Graber

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel