NOT FOR PUBLICATION FILED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS MAY 11 2017
MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
U.S. COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, No. 16-50170
Plaintiff-Appellee, D.C. No. 3:15-cr-02659-BEN
v.
MEMORANDUM*
TANYA MARIE MORREO,
Defendant-Appellant.
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Southern District of California
Roger T. Benitez, District Judge, Presiding
Submitted May 8, 2017**
Before: REINHARDT, LEAVY, and NGUYEN, Circuit Judges.
Tanya Marie Morreo appeals from the district court’s judgment and
challenges the 180-month sentence imposed following her guilty-plea conviction
for importation of methamphetamine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 952, 960. 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 Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3.
**
The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision
without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2).
Morreo contends that the district court’s mitigating role analysis was legally
flawed and resulted in the erroneous denial of her request for a minor role
adjustment under U.S.S.G. § 3B1.2. We review the district court’s interpretation
of the Guidelines de novo, and its application of the Guidelines to the facts for
abuse of discretion. See United States v. Gasca-Ruiz, 852 F.3d 1167, 1170 (9th
Cir. 2017) (en banc). Contrary to Morreo’s contention, the record demonstrates
that the district court properly compared her to her co-participants in the offense
and considered the factors enumerated in the Guideline and the totality of the
circumstances to determine whether Morreo was “substantially less culpable than
the average participant.” See U.S.S.G. § 3B1.2 cmt. n.3(A), (C); United States v.
Quintero-Leyva, 823 F.3d 519, 523 (9th Cir. 2016); see also United States v. Carty,
520 F.3d 984, 992 (9th Cir. 2008) (en banc) (district judges are presumed to know
the law and need not “tick off” all of the sentencing factors). Moreover, in light of
the circumstances of the offense, the district court did not abuse its discretion in
concluding that Morreo was not a minor participant. See Quintero-Leyva, 823 F.3d
at 523 (the court may consider factors other than those included in the commentary
to the Guideline and may deny a reduction even if some of the factors support a
contrary result).
AFFIRMED.
2 16-50170