Court Opinion

ID: 9963648
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2024-04-26 00:00:49.796279+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T08:24:55.289958
License: Public Domain

Case: 23-60459            Document: 42-1         Page: 1      Date Filed: 04/25/2024

           United States Court of Appeals
                for the Fifth Circuit                                   United States Court of Appeals
                                                                                 Fifth Circuit
                                   ____________                                FILED
                                                                           April 25, 2024
                                    No. 23-60459
                                  Summary Calendar                        Lyle W. Cayce
                                                                               Clerk
                                  ____________

United States of America,

                                                                    Plaintiff—Appellee,

                                          versus

Andrago Gaston,

                                            Defendant—Appellant.
                   ______________________________

                   Appeal from the United States District Court
                     for the Northern District of Mississippi
                             USDC No. 1:22-CR-79-1
                   ______________________________

Before Davis, Ho, and Ramirez, Circuit Judges.
Per Curiam:*
       Andrago Gaston pleaded guilty to a single count of possession with
intent to distribute fentanyl. See 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(C). The
district court sentenced him at the top of the applicable guidelines range to
188 months of imprisonment.

       _____________________
       *
           This opinion is not designated for publication. See 5th Cir. R. 47.5.
Case: 23-60459        Document: 42-1       Page: 2     Date Filed: 04/25/2024

                                  No. 23-60459

       On appeal, Gaston argues that the sentence imposed was
unreasonable. Specifically, he argues that his presentence report (PSR)
should not have included paragraphs describing other conduct that was not
relevant conduct for the instant offense and that did not result in an arrest or
charge. Gaston also argues that the district court relied too heavily on this
information or gave it too much weight in selecting his sentence.
       Because Gaston filed written objections to the inclusion of these
paragraphs, reurged this objection at sentencing, requested a lesser sentence,
and objected to the reasonableness of the sentence ultimately imposed, he
preserved the issues for appeal. Therefore, we review the substantive
reasonableness of his sentence under a deferential abuse-of-discretion
standard. See Gall v. United States, 552 U.S. 38, 51 (2007). Because the
sentence imposed is within a properly calculated guidelines range, it is
presumptively reasonable. See United States v. Cooks, 589 F.3d 173, 186 (5th
Cir. 2009). This presumption “is rebutted only upon a showing that the
sentence does not account for a factor that should receive significant weight,
it gives significant weight to an irrelevant or improper factor, or it represents
a clear error of judgment in balancing sentencing factors.” Id.
       We conclude that there was no error in including these paragraphs in
the PSR. See 18 U.S.C. § 3661; United States v. Harris, 702 F.3d 226, 230
(5th Cir. 2012). We also note that, in response to his objections, the district
court stated at sentencing that Gaston’s sentence would be based upon his
actual convictions. In light of the district court’s statements, we conclude
that Gaston has not shown that his sentence gave significant weight to an
improper factor or that it represents a clear error of judgment in balancing
the sentencing factors. See Cooks, 589 F.3d at 186. Thus, Gaston has not
rebutted the presumption of reasonableness.
       Accordingly, the district court’s judgment is AFFIRMED.

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