United States of America v. Sacramento Diaz

NOT FOR PUBLICATION
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
v.
SACRAMENTO DIAZ,
Defendant - Appellant.
No. 14-50338
D.C. No. 3:14-cr-00271-BEN
MEMORANDUM*
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Southern District of California
Roger T. Benitez, District Judge, Presiding
Submitted June 22, 2015**
Before: HAWKINS, GRABER, and W. FLETCHER, Circuit Judges.
Sacramento Diaz appeals the 70-month sentence imposed following his
guilty-plea conviction for importation of methamphetamine in violation of 21
U.S.C. §§ 952 and 960. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291, and we
affirm.
FILED
JUN 26 2015
MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
U.S. COURT OF APPEALS
* This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent
except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3.
** The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision
without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2).

-- 1 of 2 --

Diaz argues that the district court legally erred in denying a minor role
reduction to his base offense level. We review the district court’s interpretation of
the Guidelines de novo and its finding that a defendant did not play a minor role
for clear error. See United States v. Hurtado, 760 F.3d 1065, 1068 (9th Cir. 2014),
cert. denied, 135 S.Ct. 1467 (2015). The record reflects that the district court knew
and applied the correct legal standard, including its duty to compare Diaz’s role to
that of other participants in the drug organization. See U.S.S.G. § 3B1.2
cmt. n.3(A); United States v. Rojas-Millan, 234 F.3d 464, 473-74 (9th Cir. 2000).
Moreover, the court did not clearly err in concluding that Diaz was not a minor
participant given the amount of drugs he transported and the fee he was promised.
See Hurtado, 760 F.3d at 1069.
AFFIRMED.
14-50338 2

-- 2 of 2 --