United States v. Alexander De Leon

MEMORANDUM

Defendant Alexander Guerra De Leon (Guerra) was found illegally in the United States after having previously been deported, and was charged with violating 8 U.S.C. § 1326 (a). Guerra pled guilty without the benefit of a fast-track plea agreement, and was sentenced to twenty-four months imprisonment and to three years supervised release. Guerra has timely appealed his sentence. We affirm the sentence of the district court.

First, the district court did not plainly err in commenting that Guerra would benefit from rehabilitative treatment in prison. Tapia permits the district court to “discuss! ] the opportunities for rehabilitation within prison or the benefits of specific treatment or training programs,” and the district court’s comments did not exceed these permissible bounds by in any way indicating that it modified its sentence so as to provide Guerra with prison rehabilitation. Tapia v. United States, — U.S. -, 131 S.Ct. 2382, 2394 , 180 L.Ed.2d 357 (2011).

Second, the district court did not abuse its discretion in sentencing Guerra to a twenty-four month sentence, which falls at the low end of the applicable Guidelines range. The district court adequately and…