Opinion ID: 150323
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Marquez

Text: We begin with the issues presented by Marquez. Marquez first argues that the district court erred in denying him a three-level reduction for a mitigating role in the offense. We review a district court's interpretation and application of the sentencing guidelines de novo and its fact-finding for clear error. See United States v. Haynes, 582 F.3d 686, 708 (7th Cir.2009). Because it rests on a finding of fact by the district court, we review the district court's denial of a mitigating role reduction for clear error, and will reverse only if our review of the evidence leaves us with a definite and firm conviction that a mistake has been committed. Id. at 709 (quoting United States v. Panaigua-Verdugo, 537 F.3d 722, 724 (7th Cir.2008)). The sentencing guidelines provide a detailed system for weighing a conspirator's role in the offense. If a defendant was a minimal participant, he is entitled to receive a four-level decrease. If he was a minor participant, he is entitled to a two-level decrease. For those whose role fell between minimal and minor participation, a three-level decrease is appropriate. See U.S.S.G. § 3B1.2. Marquez claims that he fell between a minimal and minor participant because his job was simply to follow the orders of the leaders of the Organization and, specifically, an individual by the name of Bonaficio. Marquez argued at sentencing that the recorded phone calls do not show him directing the miqueros and negotiating with them over debts owed to the Organization on his own authority, but instead show him relaying the commands of Bonaficio. At sentencing, the government argued that Marquez should have received a three-level enhancement for his role in the conspiracy. The government maintained that the wiretapped conversations showed that Marquez was a middle manager for the conspiracy. The government also relied on the fact that more than $200,000 of the conspiracy's cash was found in Marquez's closet. The district court concluded that Marquez's telephone conversations were inconclusive as to his decision-making responsibility and noted that Marquez had not recruited anyone into the conspiracy. On the other hand, it found that Marquez was more involved in the conspiracy than the miqueros he supervised. The district court therefore rejected both parties' arguments for a role-in-the-offense adjustment. We find no error in the district court's decision not to give Marquez a mitigating-role reduction. Indeed, he appears to have received the benefit of the doubt at sentencing, as the district court found the evidence inconclusive as to whether he was in fact a middle manager. Even if Marquez was not an autonomous decision-maker, he was still entrusted with significant administrative duties and a large quantity of the Organization's cash was found in his home. These two factors alone suggest that his role was at least as significant as that of a typical member of the conspiracy. Finally, we note that in calculating his guideline range, the district court relied only on the quantity of false documents for which Marquez was personally responsible. Thus, Marquez is not being unfairly punished for conduct that was unforeseeable to him based on his role in the conspiracy. Marquez raises another challenge to his guidelines calculation. He argues that he should have received a three-level reduction for acceptance of responsibility. Marquez pleaded guilty. However, a defendant is not entitled to an acceptance of responsibility reduction merely because he pleaded guilty. See United States v. Krasinski, 545 F.3d 546, 554 (7th Cir.2008). The district court declined to find that Marquez accepted responsibility because it found that Marquez untruthfully minimized his participation in the conspiracy, was unforth-coming at his plea hearing, and falsely denied knowing that his conduct was a crime. We have previously affirmed district courts who denied a defendant an acceptance of responsibility reduction after the defendant attempted to minimize his level of involvement in an offense. See, e.g., United States v. Fiore, 178 F.3d 917, 925 (7th Cir.1999); United States v. Jones, 52 F.3d 697, 701 (7th Cir.1995). Marquez argues that he cannot lose acceptance of responsibility for making legal arguments challenging his sentence. See United States v. Purchess, 107 F.3d 1261, 1267 (7th Cir. 1997). But Marquez made factual claims the district court found untruthful, rather than legal arguments based on admitted facts. Marquez has not pointed to any evidence that casts doubt on the district court's factual findings (indeed, his previous deportation for distributing false documents makes his claim that he did not know he was committing a crime implausible on its face). Thus, the district court did not err in denying Marquez an adjustment for acceptance of responsibility. Next, Marquez argues that the district court failed to provide an adequate statement of the reasons for the sentence it imposed. Marquez identifies two supposed deficiencies in the district court's explanation: first, he claims that the district court failed to clearly state what guideline range it was applying; and second, he claims that the district court failed to explain why it was imposing a 60-month sentence on Marquez. The first alleged error stems from a dispute over the proper application of Application Note 5 to U.S.S.G. § 2L2.1. Section 2L2.1 contains enhancements for document-trafficking offenses based on the number of documents involved. The maximum enhancement is 9, for offenses involving 100 or more documents. Application Note 5 states: If the offenses involved substantially more than 100 documents, an upward departure may be warranted. At Marquez's sentencing, the district court rejected Marquez's argument for an acceptance of responsibility reduction and decided that no reduction or enhancement for his role in the offense was appropriate. The district court then clearly stated that it had calculated an adjusted offense level of 20, with a criminal history category of 1, for a guidelines sentence of 33 to 41 months of imprisonment. After stating the guideline range, the district court turned to the impact the number of documents should have on the sentence. The government argued that under § 2L2.1, an additional 12-level increase was appropriate based on the number of documents, which would have resulted in a base offense level of 32 and a guidelines range of 121 to 151 months. [2] Marquez argued that the number of documents should be offset by the personal characteristics of the defendant and his work history. Both parties made their arguments regarding the § 3553(a) factors at this time. After the district court's own discussion of the § 3553(a) factors, it imposed a 60-month term of imprisonment on Marquez. We find that the district court's explanation of the guideline range was satisfactory. Under the advisory guideline system, departures have been rendered obsolete. See United States v. Blue, 453 F.3d 948, 952 (7th Cir.2006). The district court's duty was to calculate the advisory guideline range properly, and then come up with a reasonable sentence under § 3553(a). See Gall v. United States, 552 U.S. 38, 51, 128 S.Ct. 586, 169 L.Ed.2d 445 (2007). Rather than adjusting Marquez's advisory guideline range based on the number of documents involved, the district court appropriately waited until after the guidelines range was calculated to determine whether the number of documents involved, combined with the other aspects of his offense and his personal characteristics, warranted a sentence above the advisory guideline range. Marquez also argues that the district court failed to give sufficient consideration to the § 3553(a) factors. He frames this challenge, at least in part, as a failure to adequately state reasons under § 3553(c). To the extent he relies on § 3553(c), his argument fails. Section 3553(c) does not create a statutory duty to make a detailed recitation of the § 3553(a) factors. See United States v. Rodriguez-Alvarez, 425 F.3d 1041, 1047 (7th Cir. 2005). The district court gave a lengthy explanation of the circumstances of Marquez's crime, describing him as a significant player in the Organization and someone in whom the Organization placed a significant amount of trust. The district court also noted that Marquez was well-educated and had been employed in Mexico, and that unlike many of the miqueros he was not driven by poverty to participate in the conspiracy. The district court discussed the impact on the victims and the community and the number of documents, which struck the court as far in excess of what the drafters of § 2L2.1 had contemplated. This detailed exposition is more than enough to satisfy the procedural requirement in § 3553(c) that the district court adequately explain its sentence. Finally, Marquez argues that his two concurrent 60-month sentences are substantively unreasonable. In support of this argument, he claims to have returned to this country to try to obtain a better life for himself by earning enough money to support his family, not with the intent to commit more crimes. He also suggests that his criminal history is minimal, consisting only of two arrests that were over ten years old. The government counters by arguing that an above-guidelines sentence was warranted given the nature of the offense and Marquez's personal characteristics. They note that Marquez conceded creating approximately 30,000 documents, and that other circuits have upheld above-guidelines sentences in cases involving far fewer documents. See United States v. Vargas, 73 Fed.Appx. 746, 747 (5th Cir.2003) (upholding two-level upward departure for 2,700 sets of documents); United States v. Velez, 185 F.3d 1048, 1051 (9th Cir.1999) (affirming above-guidelines sentence of 57 months for offense also involving at least 2,700 immigration files). Finally, the government argues that the district court properly took into account the fact that Marquez was educated, had stable employment, and owned real property in Mexico. The district court did not abuse its discretion in imposing an above-guidelines sentence on Marquez. The sentencing guidelines explicitly contemplate an upward departure when more than 100 documents are involved in this type of offense. See Application Note 5, U.S.S.G. § 2L2.1. The number of documents for which Marquez was personally responsible is far in excess of this number. Without suggesting that sentencing can be reduced to mathematical formulae, see United States v. Omole, 523 F.3d 691, 698 n. 1 (7th Cir.2008), we note that Marquez received a sentence that is roughly 50% more than his advisory guideline range for an offense that involves 300 times as many documents as the largest quantity contemplated by the guidelines. Moreover, the record supports the district court's inference that Marquez reentered this country for the specific purpose of committing this crime, not out of poverty or desperation, after having previously been deported while in possession of several sets of fraudulent documents. A sixty-month sentence cannot be considered excessive when considered in light of § 3553(a) and the specific characteristics of Marquez and his offense.