United States v. Rocha Flores, No. 17-20666 (5th Cir. 2019)
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Texas assault of a public servant is an "aggravated felony" under 8 U.S.C. 1326(b)(2). The court held in United States v. Gracia-Cantu that Texas assault -- family violence was a crime of violence. Because Texas assault of a public servant has substantively identical elements, the court held that it was also a crime of violence and therefore an aggravated felony under section 1326(b)(2). Accordingly, the court affirmed the district court's judgment.
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Case: 17-20666 Document: 00514936478 Page: 1 Date Filed: 04/30/2019 IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit No. 17-20666 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, FILED April 30, 2019 Lyle W. Cayce Clerk Plaintiff - Appellee v. LUIS JAVIER ROCHA FLORES, Defendant - Appellant Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas Before HAYNES, GRAVES, and HO, Circuit Judges. PER CURIAM: Luis Javier Rocha Flores contends that Texas assault of a public servant is not an “aggravated felony” under 8 U.S.C. § 1326(b)(2), because it is not a “crime of violence.” See 8 U.S.C. § 1326(a), (b)(2) (requiring commission of an “aggravated felony,” defined in part as a “crime of violence”); TEX. PEN. CODE § 22.01(a)(1), (b)(1) (providing the elements of Texas assault of a public servant). But, in United States v. Gracia-Cantu, we held that Texas “Assault— Family Violence” is a “crime of violence.” See 920 F.3d 252, 253–54 (5th Cir. 2019) (per curiam) (citing United States v. Reyes-Contreras, 910 F.3d 169 (5th Case: 17-20666 Document: 00514936478 Page: 2 Date Filed: 04/30/2019 No. 17-20666 Cir. 2018) (en banc)). Because Texas assault of a public servant has substantively identical elements, we conclude that it is also a “crime of violence.” It is therefore an “aggravated felony” under 8 U.S.C. § 1326(b)(2). Accordingly, we affirm. 2
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