Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-ca5-15-41059/USCOURTS-ca5-15-41059-0/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
Esequiel Cardenas-Cabrera
Appellant
United States of America
Appellee

Document Text:

IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT

No. 15-41059

Summary Calendar

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, 

 Plaintiff - Appellee

v.

ESEQUIEL CARDENAS-CABRERA, also known as Jesus CardenasCardenas,

 Defendant - Appellant

Appeal from the United States District Court

for the Southern District of Texas

USDC No. 2:15-CR-52-2

Before GRAVES, HIGGINSON, and COSTA, Circuit Judges.

STEPHEN A. HIGGINSON, Circuit Judge:*

Esequiel Cardenas-Cabrera pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with 

intent to distribute over 100 kilograms of marijuana, in violation of 21 U.S.C.

§§ 846, 841(a)(1), and 841(b)(1)(B). The district court sentenced him to the 

mandatory minimum of sixty months’ imprisonment, followed by a four-year 

term of supervised release. At sentencing, the district court orally pronounced 

 

* 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.

United States Court of Appeals

Fifth Circuit

FILED

May 19, 2016

Lyle W. Cayce

Clerk

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No. 15-41059

2

the following special condition of supervised release: “You shall use no name 

other than your true name or true date of birth . . . nor shall you possess false 

identification documents identifying yourself by any name other than your true 

name or true date of birth.” The written judgment, however, contained a 

differently worded “Alias Condition” of supervised release:

The defendant shall not use or provide any name other than his 

true name or date of birth to anyone, nor use or possess any false 

Social Security number. The defendant also shall not possess any 

fraudulent identification document or any identification document 

that identifies the defendant other than by his true name and true 

date of birth. Additionally, upon contact with law enforcement, the 

defendant shall inform that he is an undocumented alien who is on 

supervised release.

Cardenas-Cabrera’s sole argument on appeal is that the Alias Condition 

in his written judgment conflicts with the oral pronouncement of his sentence. 

“When there is a conflict between a written sentence and an oral 

pronouncement, the oral pronouncement controls.” United States v. Wheeler, 

322 F.3d 823, 828 (5th Cir. 2003) (quoting United States v. Moreci, 283 F.3d 

293, 300 (5th Cir. 2002)). “If the written judgment broadens the restrictions or 

requirements of supervised release from an oral pronouncement, a conflict 

exists.” United States v. Mireles, 471 F.3d 551, 558 (5th Cir. 2006). And “[i]f 

a conflict exists, the appropriate remedy is remand to the district court to 

amend the written judgment to conform to the oral sentence.” Id. 

The Government agrees—and our review of the record confirms—that

the italicized language in the written judgment quoted above broadened the 

restrictions of supervised release imposed at sentencing. Therefore, we 

GRANT the Government’s unopposed motion to REMAND this case to the 

district court for the purpose of conforming the written judgment to its oral 

sentence. See United States v. Mascorro-Cruz, 596 F. App’x 338, 339 (5th Cir. 

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No. 15-41059

3

2015) (per curiam) (granting an unopposed motion to remand under similar 

circumstances). 

 Case: 15-41059 Document: 00513512570 Page: 3 Date Filed: 05/19/2016