United States v. Eddie Castilla-Lugo
2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 22437
6th Cir.2012Background
- Castilla-Lugo lived in Mexico City, moved to the U.S. seeking work, and was deported twice before returning.
- He joined Reyes-Gonzalez’s operation in Grand Rapids making and selling false documents.
- The facility moved to a second apartment; documents were produced in a locked room under Reyes-Gonzalez’s control.
- Three additional men from Kansas joined; Castilla-Lugo recruited them and assisted in selling documents.
- ICE raid uncovered printers, thumb drives with templates, and Castilla-Lugo’s fraudulent cards; he was later convicted on Counts One and Two.
- District court sentenced Castilla-Lugo to 63 months, applying § 3B1.1(b) and § 2L2.1(b)(2)(C) enhancements.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether § 3B1.1(b) managerial enhancement was proper | Castilla-Lugo did not manage or supervise participants | Recruitment and organization of conspirators justified the enhancement | Yes, the enhancement applied |
| Whether § 2L2.1(b)(2)(C) 100+ documents enhancement was proper | 100+ documents counted only if produced by him; cannot be attributed pre-joining | Documents involved in the offense; number proved by templates and finished documents | Yes, the 100+ documents enhancement applied |
| Whether within-guidelines sentence was substantively reasonable | Sentence overstates his role; less severe sentence would suffice | Court appropriately weighed offense seriousness and offender characteristics; no abuse | Affirmed within-guidelines sentence as reasonable |
Key Cases Cited
- Gates v. United States, 461 F.3d 703 (6th Cir. 2006) (guidelines factors need not all be proven for enhancement; holistic review)
- United States v. Haj-Hamed, 549 F.3d 1020 (6th Cir. 2008) (post-Booker review requires procedural reasonableness and abuse-of-discretion standard)
- United States v. Vasquez, 560 F.3d 461 (6th Cir. 2009) (standard of review for § 3B1.1 enhancements discussed)
- United States v. Moncivais, 492 F.3d 652 (6th Cir. 2007) (gives framework for reviewing factual findings in guideline enhancements)
- United States v. Campbell, 279 F.3d 392 (6th Cir. 2002) ( Campbell requirements for imputing conduct to co-conspirator)
- United States v. Castellanos, 165 F.3d 1129 (7th Cir. 1999) (document counts in § 2L2.1 context; multiple documents for single purpose)
- United States v. Perez-Gutierrez, 234 F.3d 1279 (9th Cir. 2000) (counts of documents involved; multiple entries for one person considered)
- United States v. Singh, 335 F.3d 1321 (11th Cir. 2003) (counts all documents involved in the offense for § 2L2.1(b)(2))
- United States v. Najera-Luna, 262 F. App’x 889 (10th Cir. 2008) (evaluates number of templates and documents involved under § 2L2.1)