United States v. Jose Alvarez-Lopez

FILED NOT FOR PUBLICATION OCT 05 2010 MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS U .S. C O U R T OF APPE ALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, No. 09-30352 Plaintiff - Appellee, D.C. No. 1:08-cr-00113-EJL v. MEMORANDUM * JOSE LUIS ALVAREZ-LOPEZ, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Idaho Edward J. Lodge, District Judge, Presiding Submitted September 13, 2010 ** Before: SILVERMAN, CALLAHAN, and N.R. SMITH, Circuit Judges. Jose Luis Alvarez-Lopez appeals from the 120-month sentence imposed following a guilty-plea conviction for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and 846. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291, and we affirm. * 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). Alvarez-Lopez contends that the district court erred by failing to grant safety-valve relief, because: (1) the district court relied on a mistaken belief that he admitted to a role in the conspiracy beyond what was stated at the plea hearing; (2) there was substantial evidence of miscommunication between himself and the government, and (3) he was denied the opportunity to provide a truthful and complete statement. The district court did not clearly err by denying relief based on its conclusion that Alvarez-Lopez had not provided a completely truthful account regarding his role in the conspiracy despite the numerous opportunities he was given to do so. See 18 U.S.C. § 3553(f)(5); United States v. Mejia-Pimental, 477 F.3d 1100, 1105 (9th Cir. 2007) (stating that a defendant’s good faith obligation under § 3553(f) is satisfied by providing the government with truthful and complete information by the time of the sentencing hearing). AFFIRMED. 2 09-30352