Opinion ID: 76067
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: facts

Text: 2 In 1988, Hernandez-Gonzalez entered the United States illegally. In 1991, he was arrested in North Carolina and convicted of attempted larceny, felonious larceny, injury to real and personal property, and breaking and entering. He was subsequently deported to Mexico. Hernandez-Gonzalez re-entered the United States illegally in 1998. On January 21, 2000, Hernandez-Gonzalez was convicted of two counts of obstruction of an officer. 1 He was then deported, but again reentered the United States illegally in May 2000. On September 6, 2001, Hernandez-Gonzalez was convicted for shoplifting. While he was serving his sentence, he was located by INS agents and charged through a one-count indictment with being found in the United States after being deported, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1326(b)(2). Hernandez-Gonzalez pled guilty without a plea agreement. The PSI assigned Hernandez-Gonzalez a base offense level of eight, pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 2L1.2(a). The PSI recommended a 16-level increase pursuant to § 2L1.2(b)(1)(A)(ii), as altered by Amendment 632 2 because the defendant was previously deported ... after a conviction for a felony that is ... a crime of violence. According to the PSI, the predicate for this 16-level increase was Hernandez-Gonzalez' prior conviction for obstruction of an officer. 3 Neither Hernandez-Gonzalez nor the government filed any objections to the PSI. 3 At the sentencing hearing, Hernandez-Gonzalez stated that he did not have any objections to the PSI, but requested a downward departure. Hernandez-Gonzalez argued that he merited a downward departure because, while his offense of obstructing an officer met the legal definition of a crime of violence under 2L1.2(b)(1)(A)(ii), the 16-level departure overstated the seriousness of his offense. Hernandez-Gonzalez explained that during his January 2000 arrest, he had reflexively reacted to the officers attempting to place handcuffs on his left hand, where he had recently had surgery. He stated that, while the officer was cuffing him, Hernandez-Gonzalez pulled his hand back in reaction to the pain, thereby hitting the officer. Hernandez-Gonzalez argued that his action was not a serious kind of obstruction, and that his offense merited a lesser enhancement. 4 The government objected to any consideration of a motion for downward departure because it had only received notice of Hernandez-Gonzalez' intent to make such a motion a few minutes prior to the sentencing hearing. The government stated that, if it had been given proper notice, it would have procured the two officers involved in the obstruction charge to testify. The government further argued that the guidelines clearly warranted the 16-level enhancement under the circumstances. 5 The district court concluded that based upon the description of the incident in the presentence report, it is more serious than the simple reflex action of striking the officer while resisting the handcuffing. And since the government did not have the opportunity or notice in which to bring the officers present, I am going to deny the motion.... The district court then sentenced Hernandez-Gonzalez to 70 months imprisonment.