Opinion
No. 11-50402 D.C. No. 3:11-cr-01287-DMS-1
09-13-2012
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. CHRISTIAN HARTZ FAULK, Defendant - Appellant.
NOT FOR PUBLICATION
MEMORANDUM
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Southern District of California
Dana M. Sabraw, District Judge, Presiding
Pasadena, California
Before: KOZINSKI, Chief Judge, WATFORD and HURWITZ, Circuit Judges.
1. Warrants of removal are admissible under the public records hearsay exception, see United States v. Hernandez-Rojas, 617 F.2d 533, 535 (9th Cir. 1980), and we've permitted their use as proof of alienage, see United States v. Sotelo, 109 F.3d 1446, 1449 (9th Cir. 1997); see also United States v. Hernandez-Herrera, 273 F.3d 1213, 1217-18 (9th Cir. 2001).
2. The prosecutor's statement during closing argument that U.S. citizens aren't placed in removal proceedings didn't "undermine the fundamental fairness of the trial and contribute to the miscarriage of justice." United States v. Del Toro-Barboza, 673 F.3d 1136, 1152 (9th Cir. 2012) (internal quotation marks omitted).
3. The district judge did not err in applying a sentencing enhancement for "intentionally or recklessly creating a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury." See U.S.S.G. § 2L1.1(b)(6). The alien in United States v. Torres-Flores, 502 F.3d 885, 889 (9th Cir. 2007), was hidden behind the back seat in the cab of a pickup truck. Here, the court found the alien was "locked in" a tiny compartment with "jagged edges" and "would not have the ability to exit on [her] own." Faulk's conduct was akin to transporting an alien in the trunk of a car, which is one of the examples listed in the Guidelines application notes as triggering the enhancement. See U.S.S.G. § 2L1.1 cmt. n.5.
AFFIRMED.
This disposition isn't appropriate for publication and isn't precedent except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3.