United States of America v. JOHNY QUINONEZ-BELTRAN, AKA Johny Beltran, AKA Jesus Calderon Lopez, AKA Johnhy…

NOT FOR PUBLICATION
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
JOHNY QUINONEZ-BELTRAN, AKA
Johny Beltran, AKA Jesus Calderon Lopez,
AKA Johnhy Beltran Quinonez, AKA Johny
Quinonez,
Defendant-Appellant.
No. 21-30040
D.C. No. 1:20-cr-00042-BLW-1
MEMORANDUM*
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the District of Idaho
B. Lynn Winmill, District Judge, Presiding
Submitted October 12, 2021**
Before: TALLMAN, RAWLINSON, and BUMATAY, Circuit Judges.
Johny Quinonez-Beltran appeals from the district court’s judgment and
challenges the sentence of 12 months and 1 day imposed following his guilty-plea
conviction for distribution of cocaine and possession with the intent to distribute
* This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent
except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3.
** The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision
without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2).
FILED
OCT 13 2021
MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
U.S. COURT OF APPEALS

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2 21-30040
cocaine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1). We have jurisdiction under 28
U.S.C. § 1291, and we affirm.
Quinonez-Beltran contends that the district court erred by denying his
request for a minor-role adjustment under U.S.S.G. § 3B1.2. We review the
district court’s interpretation of the Guidelines de novo, its factual findings for
clear error, and its application of the Guidelines to the facts for abuse of discretion.
See United States v. Diaz, 884 F.3d 911, 914 (9th Cir. 2018). Contrary to
Quinonez-Beltran’s claim, the court did not conclude that he was precluded from
receiving the adjustment because his role was essential to the drug transactions.
Rather, the court reasoned that although street-level dealers may receive the
adjustment under some circumstances, those circumstances did not exist in this
case. As the court concluded, Quinonez-Beltran was not “substantially less
culpable than the average participant” because he fostered relationships with
customers, negotiated pricing, delivered drugs, and received proceeds. See id. at
916-17. The court properly compared Quinonez-Beltran to his alleged supplier
and applied the factors listed in the commentary to the minor-role Guideline. See
U.S.S.G. § 3B1.2 cmt. n.3(A), (C); Diaz, 884 F.3d at 916-17. The court did not
clearly err in any of its factual findings, nor did it abuse its discretion by denying
the adjustment. See U.S.S.G. § 3B1.2 cmt. n.3(C); Diaz, 884 F.3d at 914.
AFFIRMED.

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