United States v. Mendoza

IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit No. 05-51096 F I L E D Summary Calendar September 12, 2007 Charles R. Fulbruge III Clerk UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Plaintiff-Appellee v. MARICELA MENDOZA Defendant-Appellant Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas USDC No. 2:03-CR-825-ALL Before JOLLY, DENNIS, and PRADO, Circuit Judges. PER CURIAM:* Maricela Mendoza appeals the 180-month sentence imposed following her conviction for one count of theft from a health care benefit program and two counts of money laundering. Mendoza argues that her guidelines calculations were improper. She contends that the district court erred by finding that her crimes harmed the solvency of a financial institution and adjusting her offense level in accordance with U.S.S.G. § 2B1.1(b)(13). Mendoza does not cite to a case that squarely supports her assertion that the disputed adjustment was * 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 R. 47.5, the court has determined that this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH CIR.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. 05-51096 erroneous. Consequently, she has not shown that the district court plainly erred when calculating her guidelines sentencing range. See United States v. Valenzuela-Quevedo, 407 F.3d 728, 732-33 (5th Cir. 2005); United States v. Hull, 160 F.3d 265, 272 (5th Cir. 1998). Mendoza also contends that her sentence, which exceeds the pertinent guidelines range, is unreasonable. This argument is unavailing. The district court gave adequate valid reasons to support its choice of sentence, and the degree of departure was not unreasonable. See United States v. Armendariz, 451 F.3d 352, 358 (5th Cir. 2006); United States v. Smith, 440 F.3d 704, 706-07 (5th Cir. 2006). Mendoza has shown no error in connection with her sentence. Accordingly, the judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED. 2