Ibarra-Pino

MEMORANDUM

Christopher Ibarra-Pino (“Ibarra”) appeals his jury conviction and sentence for importation of marijuana in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 952 and 960 and possession of marijuana in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841 (a)(1). In a separate opinion filed concurrently with this memorandum disposition, we affirm the district court’s rulings on Ibarra’s duress defense. With respect to Ibarra’s other arguments, we also affirm.

First, the district court did not abuse its discretion by excluding evidence related to the culpability of a third party. The probative value of the excluded evidence was low, and the evidence presented a danger of unfair prejudice. See United States v. Waters, 627 F.3d 345, 353 (9th Cir.2010). Even if the district court improperly excluded relevant evidence, any error was harmless as it is more likely than not that exclusion of the evidence did not materially affect the verdict. See id. at 358 . Further, exclusion of the evidence did not violate Ibarra’s constitutional right to present a defense because the district court’s rulings did not prevent him from presenting important evidence that would have “added substantially” to the jury’s knowledge. See United…