FILED
NOT FOR PUBLICATION SEP 21 2012
MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS U .S. C O U R T OF APPE ALS
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, No. 11-50375
Plaintiff - Appellee, D.C. No. 2:11-cr-00076-ODW
v.
MEMORANDUM *
KAMRAN KEIVAN,
Defendant - Appellant.
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Central District of California
Otis D. Wright, II, District Judge, Presiding
Submitted September 10, 2012 **
Before: WARDLAW, CLIFTON, and N.R. SMITH, Circuit Judges.
Kamran Keivan appeals from the 34-month sentence imposed following his
guilty-plea conviction for importation of opium, in violation of 21 U.S.C.
§§ 952(a), 960(a)(1), and 960(b)(3). We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C.
*
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent
except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3.
**
The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision
without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2).
§ 1291, and we affirm.
Keivan first contends that the district court procedurally erred by placing too
much emphasis on the advisory sentencing Guidelines range and arbitrarily
refusing to impose a term below that range. The record does not support this
contention. The court considered Keivan’s arguments in support of a below-
Guidelines sentence and the 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) sentencing factors, and concluded
that a downward variance was not warranted in light of the amount of drugs
Keivan imported and other relevant sentencing factors.
Keivan next contends that the district court erred by requiring him to forego
his request for a continuance in exchange for a 30-month sentence, and by
considering factors outside the scope of the section 3553(a) sentencing factors,
specifically defense counsel’s continuance requests. The record belies these
contentions. The district court did not pressure Keivan to withdraw his
continuance request, but rather granted a continuance to permit Keivan to review
the presentence report and to obtain mitigating evidence. Furthermore, the record
reflects that the court selected the 34-month sentence because it concluded that
Keivan’s claim that he imported the opium for personal medicinal purposes was
not credible, and not because of counsel’s continuance requests.
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Keivan additionally contends that the district court abused its discretion by
denying his request for a three-week continuance. The district court did not abuse
its discretion by granting a continuance shorter than the one Keivan requested. See
United States v. Sarno, 73 F.3d 1470, 1492-93 (9th Cir. 1995).
Keivan finally contends that his sentence is substantively unreasonable. In
light of the totality of the circumstances and the section 3553(a) sentencing factors,
the sentence is substantively reasonable. See Gall v. United States, 552 U.S. 38, 51
(2007).
AFFIRMED.
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