FILED
United States Court of Appeals
Tenth Circuit
May 18, 2011
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
Elisabeth A. Shumaker
TENTH CIRCUIT Clerk of Court
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
v. No. 10-2092
(D. Ct. No. 1:08-CR-02718-BB-1)
BALTAZAR VERDUGO-MONTOYA, (D. N.M.)
Defendant - Appellant.
ORDER AND JUDGMENT *
Before BRISCOE, Chief Circuit Judge, TACHA, Senior Circuit Judge, and
O’BRIEN, Circuit Judge.
After examining the briefs and the appellate record, this three-judge panel
has determined unanimously that oral argument would not be of material
assistance in the determination of this appeal. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2); 10th
Cir. R. 34.1(G). The case is therefore ordered submitted without oral argument.
Defendant-appellant Baltazar Verdugo-Montoya appeals his conviction and
sentence imposed for re-entry of a previously deported alien, see 8 U.S.C.
§ 1326(a)(1), (2), § 1326(b)(2). His appointed counsel has filed a brief and
*
This order and judgment is not binding precedent except under the doctrines of
law of the case, res judicata and collateral estoppel. It may be cited, however, for its
persuasive value consistent with Fed. R. App. P. 32.1 and 10th Cir. R. 32.1.
motion to withdraw pursuant to Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738, 744 (1967),
and Mr. Verdugo-Montoya has submitted a pro se brief. We have reviewed the
record and conclude that no meritorious appellate issues exist. Accordingly, we
GRANT the motion to withdraw and DISMISS Mr. Verdugo-Montoya’s appeal.
I. DISCUSSION
Mr. Verdugo-Montoya was charged with illegal re-entry and proceeded to
trial. The jury found him guilty. At sentencing, the district court applied a base
offense level of eight. See United States Sentencing Guidelines (“U.S.S.G.” or
“Guidelines”) § 2L1.2(a). The court then applied a sixteen-level specific offense
enhancement because Mr. Verdugo-Montoya had previously been deported after a
conviction for a felony drug trafficking offense. See id. § 2L1.2(b)(1)(A)(i). The
resultant offense level of twenty-four, in combination with a criminal history
category of II, resulted in an advisory Guidelines range of 57–71 months’
imprisonment. The district court sentenced him to 57 months.
Under Anders, defense counsel may “request permission to withdraw where
counsel conscientiously examines a case and determines that any appeal would be
wholly frivolous.” United States v. Calderon, 428 F.3d 928, 930 (10th Cir.2005).
If counsel makes such a request, he may “submit a brief to the client and the
appellate court indicating any potential appealable issues based on the record.”
Id. The client may then file a brief in response. Id. Thereafter, we must
undertake an independent review of the record to determine whether the
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defendant’s claims are wholly frivolous; if so, we may dismiss the appeal. Id.
Counsel’s brief and Mr. Verdugo-Montoya’s response identify the
following issues: (1) appointed trial counsel’s performance and the court’s denial
of Mr. Verdugo’s motion to change counsel prior to trial; (2) the imposition of the
sixteen-level sentence enhancement; and (3) the length and the district court’s
selection of the sentence imposed.
A. Trial Counsel’s Performance and Motion to Change Counsel
Mr. Verdugo-Montoya contends that he had little or no communication with
his court-appointed counsel prior to trial and that the district court violated his
Sixth Amendment right to counsel when it denied his request to change counsel
the day before trial. Although Mr. Verdugo-Montoya contends that he is not
raising a claim for ineffective assistance of counsel, his argument on this issue
necessarily implicates facts relating to counsel’s performance that have not yet
been developed in the record. 1 Accordingly, we dismiss it as premature,
emphasizing that Mr. Verdugo-Montoya may bring this claim on collateral
review. See United States v. Carter, 130 F.3d 1432, 1441–42 (10th Cir. 1997)
(“The general rule in this circuit is that ineffective assistance of counsel claims
1
For example, Mr. Verdugo-Montoya claims that he does not understand English.
He suggests that his counsel only communicated with him in English, failed to inform
him of the consequences of going to trial, and that his counsel had a “conflict of interest.”
Moreover, we note that a review of the district court’s docket reveals no request for a
change of counsel and no ruling on the matter from the court, which would inform this
court of the circumstances surrounding this claim.
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should be brought in collateral proceedings rather than on direct appeal . . .
[because] [a] factual record must be developed in and addressed by the district
court in the first instance for effective review.” (quotations omitted)).
B. Sentence Enhancement
Mr. Verdugo-Montoya received a sixteen-level sentence enhancement under
U.S.S.G. § 2L1.2(b)(1)(A)(i) for previously being deported as a result of a felony
conviction for a drug trafficking offense. On appeal, he argues that the district
court imposed the enhancement based on a prior felony crime of violence without
undertaking the requisite analysis under Shepard v. United States, 544 U.S. 13
(2005), including considering the judgment of conviction or charging documents.
Because Mr. Verdugo-Montoya received the enhancement based on a prior drug
trafficking offense, however, and not based on a prior crime of violence, this
argument is without merit.
C. Length and Selection of Sentence
Finally, Mr. Verdugo-Montoya takes issue with the length of his sentence
in light of the factors under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a), contends that the district court
applied the Guidelines mandatorily, and argues that the district court failed to
give reasons for the particular sentence.
On the first point, Mr. Verdugo-Montoya argues that the district court
failed to consider “the need to avoid unwarranted sentence disparities among
defendants with similar records who have been found guilty of similar conduct.”
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18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)(6). He contends that a 57-month sentence is too long, given
that other defendants with similar offense conduct and criminal history who
participate in fast-track programs receive downward departures. This argument is
foreclosed by our precedent. In United States v. Martinez-Macias, 472 F.3d 1216,
1218–19 (10th Cir. 2007), we stated:
We recognize that certain judicial districts employ fast-track
programs in order to expedite immigration offense cases, and that
“[t]hese programs allow defendants to obtain a downward departure
in their offense level under the [Sentencing Guidelines]
in exchange for pleading guilty and waiving their rights to file
certain motions and to appeal.” United States v. Martinez–Trujillo,
468 F.3d 1266, 1267 (10th Cir. 2006). These programs are
authorized by a provision in the Prosecutorial Remedies and Other
Tools to End the Exploitation of Children Today Act of 2003 (the
“PROTECT Act”). See Pub. L. No. 108–21, 117 Stat. 650 (codified
in scattered sections of 18, 28, and 42 U.S.C.). In United States v.
Martinez-Trujillo, we held that although the unavailability of such
programs to some defendants creates disparate sentences, a disparity
was not “‘unwarranted’ within the meaning of § 3553(a)(6) when the
disparity was specifically authorized by Congress in the PROTECT
Act.” 468 F.3d at 1268.
We similarly find no merit in Mr. Verdugo-Montoya’s claims that the
district court imposed the Guidelines mandatorily and failed to give reasons for
the sentence imposed. To begin, the district court thoroughly entertained Mr.
Verdugo-Montoya’s argument for a below-Guidelines sentence, which belies any
suggestion that the court thought the Guidelines were mandatory. The court also
explained why it imposed the 57-month sentence, which is the lowest within the
applicable Guidelines range. The court explained that it could not, based on
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Tenth Circuit law, simply disregard Mr. Verdugo-Montoya’s prior drug
trafficking offense in order to spare him from the resultant sixteen-level sentence
enhancement. The court did further explained, however, that because of that
large increase, a sentence at the low end of the Guidelines range was appropriate.
Finally, the court stated it would not depart or vary because Mr. Verdugo-
Montoya had proceeded to trial, and no other § 3553(a) factor warranted a below-
Guidelines sentence. Thus, the court clearly articulated reasons for the sentence
imposed.
II. CONCLUSION
We find no nonfrivolous basis for Mr. Verdugo-Montoya to challenge his
conviction or sentence. Accordingly, we GRANT counsel’s motion to withdraw
and DISMISS this appeal.
ENTERED FOR THE COURT,
Deanell Reece Tacha
Senior Circuit Judge
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