Opinion
No. 14-50073
11-26-2014
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, v. CARLOS ALBERTO MADERO-HIGUERA, Defendant - Appellant.
NOT FOR PUBLICATION
D.C. No. 3:13-cr-02436-JLS MEMORANDUM Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of California
Janis L. Sammartino, District Judge, Presiding
Before: LEAVY, FISHER, and N.R. SMITH, Circuit Judges.
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3.
Carlos Alberto Madero-Higuera appeals from the district court's judgment and challenges the 70-month sentence imposed following his guilty-plea conviction for possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1). We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291, and we affirm.
Madero-Higuera contends that the district court erred by failing to exercise its independent judgment in denying his request for a minor role adjustment under U.S.S.G. § 3B1.2(b). The record does not support this contention. The district court considered the parties' arguments and concluded that the record did not provide a basis for finding that Madero-Higuera played a minor role in the criminal scheme. The court's rejection of the adjustment was consistent with the guideline and our precedent. See U.S.S.G. § 3B1.2 cmt. n.3(A) (adjustment available only if defendant is "substantially less culpable than the average participant"); United States v. Rodriguez-Castro, 641 F.3d 1189, 1193 (9th Cir. 2011) (defendant's burden to establish his entitlement to the adjustment).
AFFIRMED.