United States v. Pascual Francisco-Pascual

MEMORANDUM

Pascual Francisco-Pascual (Francisco) appeals his jury conviction for illegal reentry into the United States in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1326 . We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and we affirm.

Generally, “a defendant is entitled to his proposed instruction even if his evidence is weak, insufficient, inconsistent, or of doubtful credibility.” United States v. Espinoza-Baza, 647 F.3d 1182, 1191 (9th Cir.2011) (internal quotation marks omitted). But while this standard is “somewhat generous,” the “trial record must still contain evidence upon which the jury could rationally find for the defendant.” Id. (internal quotation marks omitted). Thus, a defendant must present something more than a mere “scintilla of evidence” of national status “to warrant a defense instruction on that theory.” See id.; United States v. Sotelo, 109 F.3d 1446, 1448 (9th Cir.1997).

“All citizens of the United States are also nationals. However, some nationals are not citizens.” Perdomo-Padilla v. Ashcroft, 333 F.3d 964, 967 (9th Cir.2003). We have held that “a person can become a ‘national of the United States’ ... only through birth or naturalization.” Id. at 972 . Today, “the only…