United States v. Pmb, Juvenile Male

MEMORANDUM

PMB, a juvenile defendant, appeals from his judgment of conviction for two counts of aggravated sexual abuse, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1153 , 2241(a), and 2246(2)(A), and 5031-37. Because the parties are familiar with the factual history of this case, we need not recount it here. We vacate the convictions and remand the case to the district court for entry of a judgment of acquittal.

To establish a defendant’s legal status as an Indian under 18 U.S.C. § 1153 , the government must prove that the defendant has some degree of Indian blood “from a federally recognized tribe,” United States v. Maggi, 598 F.3d 1073, 1080 (9th Cir.2010), and “tribal or government recognition as an Indian,” United States v. Bruce, 394 F.3d 1215, 1223 (9th Cir.2005) (internal quotation marks omitted). “Indian status is an element of the offense that must be alleged in the indictment and proved beyond a reasonable doubt.” United States v. Zepeda, 705 F.3d 1052, 1056 (9th Cir.2013) (quoting Maggi, 598 F.3d at 1077 ) (internal quotation marks omitted).

We must determine “whether, viewing all evidence in the light most favorable to the government, any rational juror could have found beyond a…