United States Court of Appeals
Fifth Circuit
FILED
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS June 22, 2004
FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT
Charles R. Fulbruge III
Clerk
No. 03-41498
Conference Calendar
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
versus
JOSE LUIS GONZALEZ,
Defendant-Appellant.
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Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Southern District of Texas
USDC No. C-03-CR-183-1
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Before BARKSDALE, DeMOSS, and CLEMENT, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:*
Jose Luis Gonzalez appeals his jury-trial conviction for
possession with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of
cocaine. See 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(A).
Gonzalez first argues that the district court erred by not
allowing certain testimony from a law enforcement agent. That
testimony concerned specific information about possible
sentencing reductions that the agent provided to Gonzalez during
his interrogation. Because other law enforcement agents
*
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this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except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. 03-41498
-2-
testified that Gonzalez already had confessed before being
advised of possible sentence reductions, and because the jury
heard some testimony that Gonzalez had been advised of the
possibility of sentencing reductions during his interrogation,
we conclude that any error in excluding the specific testimony
was harmless. See Delaware v. Van Arsdall, 475 U.S. 673, 681
(1986) (“[A]n otherwise valid conviction should not be set
aside if . . . the constitutional error was harmless beyond a
reasonable doubt.”).
Gonzalez also argues that the Government failed to prove
that he knowingly possessed the type and amount of controlled
substance alleged in the indictment. As Gonzalez concedes, this
argument is foreclosed by this court’s decision in United States
v. Gamez-Gonzales, 319 F.3d 695, 700 (5th Cir.), cert. denied
538 U.S. 1068 (2003).
AFFIRMED.