Lopez-Zamora

MEMORANDUM **

Jose Luis Lopez-Zamora appeals the sentence imposed by the district court following his guilty plea conviction for attempted entry after deportation in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1326 . Lopez contends that the district court erred when it enhanced his guideline score by 16 levels. He asserts that the government did not establish that his prior conviction for violating California Health & Safety Code § 11379(a) constituted a drug trafficking offense. See USSG § 2L1.2(b)(l)(A). 1 Because we agree, we vacate and remand.

To determine whether Lopez’s prior conviction under Section 11379(a) qualifies as a drug trafficking offense for federal sentencing purposes, we must apply a categorical approach. See Taylor v. United States, 495 U.S. 575, 600-02 , 110 S.Ct. 2143, 2159-61 , 109 L.Ed.2d 607 (1990); United States v. Corona-Sanchez, 291 F.3d 1201, 1203-04 (9th Cir.2002) (en banc). In United States v. Rivera-Sanchez, 247 F.3d 905, 908-09 (9th Cir.2001) (en banc), we held that California Health and Safety Code § 11360(a) does not facially qualify as a predicate offense under USSG § 2L1.2(b)(l)(A) because it criminalizes solicitation. Section 11379(a) contains identical…