United States v. Mariano Anguiano-Morfin

Defendant Mariano Anguiano-Morfin appeals the district court’s denial of his motion for a new trial. Anguiano, a former lawful permanent resident of the United States, was removed to Mexico in early 2010. After his removal, Anguiano approached a United States port of entry and told the border agent that he was a U.S. citizen. He was arrested and tried under 18 U.S.C. § 911 for making a false claim of citizenship. His sole defense at trial was that he suffered from a delusion that caused him genuinely to believe that he was a United States citizen. Anguiano argued that his misstatement was therefore not willful as required by the statute. The jury convicted Anguiano, and the district court denied his motion for a new trial. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 and we affirm.

I. Jury Instructions

Anguiano’s first argument is that the jury instructions were inadequate. “A criminal defendant has a constitutional right to have the jury instructed according to his theory of the case, provided that the requested instruction is supported by law and has some foundation in the evidence.” United States v. Marguet-Pillado, 648 F.3d 1001, 1006 (9th Cir.2011) (citations and…