United States v. Pedro Sanchez-Zarate

MEMORANDUM

Pedro Sanchez-Zarate appeals from the 60-month sentence imposed following his guilty-plea conviction for being a deported alien found in the United States, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1326 . We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and we affirm.

Sanchez-Zarate contends that the district court erred in finding that his prior conviction under California Health and Safety Code § 11351 categorically qualifies as a drug trafficking offense under U.S.S.G. § 2L1.2(b)(1)(A)(i). He contends that California Health and Safety Code § 11351 is categorically overbroad because it prohibits the possession or purchase for sale of a wider range of controlled substances than does federal law. Because this court has previously noted that “California law regulates the possession and sale of numerous substances that are not similarly regulated by the [Controlled Substances Act]”, Ruiz-Vidal v. Gonzales, 473 F.3d 1072, 1078 (9th Cir.2007), we look to whether “documentation or judicially noticeable facts”, United States v. Benitez-Perez, 367 F.3d 1200, 1203 (9th Cir.2004) (internal quotation marks and citations omitted), clearly establish that Sanchez-Zarate’s prior conviction qualifies…