United States v. Diaz-Menera, No. 21-6127 (10th Cir. 2023)
Annotate this CaseJose Diaz-Menera challenged the sentence he received for money laundering, arguing that the district court erroneously determined his base offense level under § 2S1.1(a)(1) rather than § 2S1.1(a)(2) of the United States Sentencing Guidelines. The district court applied § 2S1.1(a)(1) based on its finding that Diaz-Menera was a member of the underlying drug conspiracy. Diaz-Menera argued that such finding was insufficient to trigger application of § 2S1.1(a)(1) because he did not personally possess or distribute drugs. However, because the Tenth Circuit concluded that a drug conspiracy can be an underlying offense for purposes of applying § 2S1.1(a)(1), it found no error in the district court’s sentencing decision. But because the government conceded Diaz-Menera’s second argument— agreeing that it breached the plea agreement by failing to move for a one-level reduction under U.S.S.G. § 3E1.1(b)—the Court vacated Diaz-Menera’s sentence and remand for resentencing.
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