United States v. Jorge Oliva

MEMORANDUM

In October 2009, a jury convicted Jorge Ortiz Oliva and Pablo Barajas Lopez of a drug trafficking conspiracy, including distribution of and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana. On appeal, Oliva and Lopez challenge the district court’s denial of a series of pretrial motions. We affirm.

A. Jorge Ortiz Oliva.

1. Motion to Suppress.

Oliva challenges the district court’s denial of his motion to suppress evidence seized from the master bedroom closet of Rocio Limon’s apartment. Although a criminal defendant may testify in support of his motion to suppress, Oliva did not do so. See Simmons v. United States, 390 U.S. 377, 394 , 88 S.Ct. 967 , 19 L.Ed.2d 1247 (1968) (a defendant’s testimony in support of his motion to suppress will not be held against him at trial). Oliva failed to establish a reasonable expectation of privacy in the bags found in the master bedroom closet, and the district court therefore correctly found he lacked standing to suppress the evidence seized. See United States v. Reyes-Bosque, 596 F.3d 1017, 1026 (9th Cir.2010) (“To claim the protections of the Fourth Amendment, defendants must demonstrate that they had…