Opinion ID: 217943
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Judicial Estoppel and the Plea Agreement

Text: We first address whether the government is judicially estopped from arguing in support of the sentence imposed by the district court, and whether in so arguing the government is in breach of the plea agreement. Clearly, it is not. Under the plain terms of the plea agreement, the government is free to support on appeal the sentence actually imposed. The government has not violated the plea agreement by taking the position on appeal that the sentence should be affirmed. See United States v. Schuman, 127 F.3d 815, 817-18 (9th Cir.1997) (per curiam). The government's position on appeal is not that Rodriguez was not entitled to a minor-role adjustment, but that the district court did not err in declining to award the adjustment. This argument is not inconsistent with its argument to the district court, so estoppel cannot apply here. See Russell v. Rolfs, 893 F.2d 1033, 1037 (9th Cir.1990) (noting that estoppel applies where a party makes an assertion in a legal proceeding that directly contradicts an earlier assertion).