United States Court of Appeals
Fifth Circuit
F I L E D
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT February 18, 2004
Charles R. Fulbruge III
Clerk
No. 03-40942
Conference Calendar
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
versus
JOSE MARCOS CASTILLO-HERNANDEZ,
Defendant-Appellant.
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Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Southern District of Texas
USDC No. M-03-CR-237-1
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Before HIGGINBOTHAM, EMILIO M. GARZA, and PRADO, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:*
Jose Marcos Castillo-Hernandez contends for the first time
on appeal that the aggravated felony enhancement found in
8 U.S.C. § 1326(b) is unconstitutional under Apprendi v. New
Jersey, 530 U.S. 466, 490 (2000). He concedes that this argument
is foreclosed by Almendarez-Torres v. United States, 523 U.S. 224
(1998), but asserts that Almendarez-Torres has been called into
doubt by Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U.S. 466 (2000). See United
States v. Dabeit, 231 F.3d 979, 984 (5th Cir. 2000). He seeks to
*
Pursuant to 5TH CIR. R. 47.5, the court has determined that
this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except
under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH CIR. R. 47.5.4.
No. 03-40942
-2-
preserve the issue for possible Supreme Court review. The
judgment is
AFFIRMED.