United States v. Vasquez, No. 15-41168 (5th Cir. 2016)
Annotate this CaseDefendant was convicted of knowingly enticing and coercing an individual to engage in unlawful sexual activity. The district court applied an eight-level enhancement for an offense involving a minor under twelve years of age pursuant to USSG 2G1.3(b)(5), and sentenced defendant to 140 months in prison. Defendant attempted to entice a man named Keith, who lived in another state, to come visit her by suggesting that Keith could have sexual relations with defendant's twelve-year-old daughter and her cousin’s allegedly unborn infant after the infant’s birth. The court held that section 2G1.3(b)(5) does not apply when a defendant invents and offers a fictitious minor under twelve years of age to entice another person to engage in unlawful sexual activity. By failing to consider whether the alleged minor actually existed, the court concluded that the district court did not make the factual findings necessary to apply section 2G1.3(b)(5) in this case. Accordingly, the court vacated the sentence and remanded for resentencing.
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