United States v. Izaguirre-Flores ( 2005 )

United States Court of Appeals
Fifth Circuit
F I L E D
REVISED APRIL 20, 2005
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS March 31, 2005
FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT
Charles R. Fulbruge III
Clerk
No. 04-40276
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
versus
JUAN RAUL IZAGUIRRE-FLORES,
Defendant-Appellant.
--------------------
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Southern District of Texas
Criminal No. M-03-840-01
--------------------
Before WIENER, BARKSDALE, and DENNIS, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:
Defendant-Appellant Juan Raul Izaguirre-Flores (“Izaguirre”)
asks us, inter alia, to resolve a question of first impression in
this circuit: whether taking indecent liberties with a child in
violation of North Carolina General Statute § 14-202.1(a)(1)
constitutes “sexual abuse of a minor” for purposes of the “crime of
violence” sentencing enhancement in United States Sentencing
Guidelines § 2L1.2. The district court answered this question in
the affirmative. We agree and affirm.
I. FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS
In May 2002, a North Carolina grand jury indicted Izaguirre,
a Honduran citizen, for taking indecent liberties with a child in
violation of North Carolina General Statute § 14-202.1(a)(1).1
Izaguirre pleaded guilty to the indictment and was sentenced to 16
to 20 months imprisonment. In June 2003, Izaguirre was deported to
Honduras.
In August of that year, United States Border Patrol agents
encountered Izaguirre near Falfurrias, Texas. Izaguirre admitted
to the agents that he is a citizen of Honduras and that he had
illegally entered the United States by crossing the Rio Grande
river.
The government indicted Izaguirre under 8 U.S.C. § 1326 for
illegal reentry into the United States following deportation. The
indictment did not allege that Izaguirre’s June 2003 deportation
was subsequent to a felony or aggravated felony conviction although
the indictment contained a citation to both 8 U.S.C. §§ 1326(a) and
1
This provision renders
[a] person . . . guilty of taking indecent liberties
with children if, being 16 years of age or more and at
least five years older than the child in question, he .
. . willfully takes or attempts to take any immoral,
improper, or indecent liberties with any child of
either sex under the age of 16 years for the purpose of
arousing or gratifying sexual desire . . . .
N.C. GEN. STAT. § 14-202.1(a)(1).
2
(b).2 In October, Izaguirre pleaded guilty to the indictment in
conformance with a plea agreement.
The district court ordered a Presentence Report (“PSR”). The
probation officer recommended a base offense level of eight under
Sentencing Guidelines § 2L1.2(a). A base offense level of eight,
coupled with Izaguirre’s criminal history category of II, would
have set a sentencing range of four to ten months. Citing
Izaguirre’s 2003 North Carolina indecency conviction, the probation
officer recommended that Izaguirre’s base offense level be enhanced
under Sentencing Guidelines § 2L1.2(b)(1)(A)(ii), which provides a
16-level enhancement to the base offense level of an alien
convicted under Section 1326 if the alien was previously deported
after conviction for a “crime of violence.” Izaguirre filed an
objection to the PSR, in which he argued that his prior indecency
conviction was not a crime of violence.
After exhaustive briefing by the parties and consideration of
the issue by the district court, it held that a violation of North
Carolina General Statute 14-202.1(a)(1) is a crime of violence for
purposes of Section 2L1.2 because a violation of the statute
constitutes “sexual abuse of a minor,” which is a specifically-
enumerated offense under application note (1)(B)(iii) to Section
2L1.2. Accordingly, the district court determined that Izaguirre’s
2
Section 1326(b) increases Section 1326(a)’s maximum
possible term of imprisonment from two to 20 years for an alien
whose prior removal was subsequent to commission of an aggravated
felony. See 8 U.S.C. § 1326(b)(2).
3
base offense level —— after having downwardly departed —— was 21,
which provides a range of 41 to 51 months imprisonment. The
district court sentenced Izaguirre to 41 months imprisonment.
Izaguirre timely filed his Notice of Appeal.
II. ANALYSIS
A. Standard of Review
The district court’s characterization of Izaguirre’s prior
conviction is a question of law that we review de novo.3
B. Discussion
1. “Sexual Abuse of a Minor”
An alien convicted of illegal reentry into the United States
after deportation is subject to a much longer sentence if, before
his deportation, he had committed a crime a violence.4 The
application note to Section 2L1.2 defines a “crime of violence” as
any of the following: murder, manslaughter, kidnapping,
aggravated assault, forcible sex offenses, statutory
rape, sexual abuse of a minor . . . or any offense under
federal, state, or local law that has as an element the
3
See United States v. Vasquez-Balandran, 76 F.3d 648, 649
(5th Cir. 1996); see also United States v. Villegas, —— F.3d ——,
2005 WL 627963, at * 2 (5th Cir. Mar. 17, 2005) (concluding that
“when a district court has imposed a sentence under the
Guidelines, this court continues, after Booker, to review the
district court’s interpretation and application of the Guidelines
de novo.”). See United States v. Booker, —— U.S. ——, 125 S. Ct.
738 (2005).
4
See U. S. SENTENCING GUIDELINES MANUAL § 2L1.2(b)(1)(A)(ii)
(2003).
The district court applied the 2003 version of the
Guidelines.
4
use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force
against the person of another.5
Thus, to determine whether the district court properly enhanced
Izaguirre’s sentence, we must resolve whether Congress intended the
phrase “sexual abuse of a minor” to include conduct punishable
under North Carolina General Statute § 14-202.1(a)(1).6 The
question whether an offense falls within Section 2L1.2’s definition
of “crime of violence” is a question of federal law.7 As the
federal law here includes the possibility that a previous violation
may be one of state law, we look to state law to determine “its
nature and whether its violation is a crime of violence under
federal law.”8
The parties disagree about the analysis that we are supposed
to employ to decide whether “taking indecent liberties with
5
See id., cmt. n. 1(B)(iii) (emphasis added).
6
See United States v. Zavala–Sustaita, 214 F.3d 601, 603
(5th Cir. 2000).
Because Izaguirre was convicted under Section 14-
202.1(a)(1), we need not —— and do not —— consider whether a
violation of Section 14-202.1(a)(2) constitutes “sexual abuse of
a minor.” See N.C. GEN STAT. § 14-202.1(a)(2) (noting that a
person is guilty of taking indecent liberties with children if he
“willfully commits or attempts to commit any lewd or lascivious
act upon or with the body or any part or member of the body of
any child of either sex under the age of 16 years”).
7
United States v. Pierce, 278 F.3d 282, 286 (4th Cir.
2002).
8
See id.
5
children” constitutes “sexual abuse of a minor.”9 Izaguirre urges
us to apply the categorical approach of Taylor v. United States,10
which requires us to analyze the elements of the state criminal
statute and then to match them to the elements of the offense of
“sexual abuse of a minor.” Specifically, Izaguirre argues that we
must base our determination on the language of the statute itself
and not the defendant’s underlying conduct, viz., each element of
the statute of conviction must necessarily be encompassed within
the elements of the enumerated offense in Section 2L1.2, cmt.
(1)(B)(iii) to warrant the 16-level enhancement.11
9
We note, at the outset, that the Supreme Court’s recent
opinion in Booker does not control our analysis because here we
address the application of the Guidelines only as they treat
recidivism, expressly excluded under the Supreme Court’s Apprendi
line of cases, including Booker. See Booker, 125 S. Ct. at 756
(“Any fact (other than a prior conviction) which is necessary to
support a sentence exceeding the maximum authorized by the facts
established by a plea of guilty or a jury verdict must be
admitted by the defendant or proved to a jury beyond a reasonable
doubt.” (emphasis added)).
10
495 U.S. 575 (1990).
11
See, e.g., United States v. Calderon-Pena, 383 F.3d 254,
257 (5th Cir. 2004) (en banc) (“Prior decisions of this court
have accordingly held that the statute of conviction, not the
defendant’s underlying conduct, is the proper focus.”); United
States v. Vargas-Duran, 356 F.3d 598, 606 (5th Cir. 2004) (en
banc) (“Looking only at the fact of Vargas-Duran’s conviction and
the statutory definition of intoxication assault, it is clear
that the intentional use of force against the person of another
is not a necessary component of the offense.”); United States v.
Rodriguez-Rodriguez, 388 F.3d 466, 468-69 (5th Cir. 2004) (same).
6
The district court employed a “common sense” approach to
determine whether a violation of Section 14-202.1(a)(1) constitutes
“sexual abuse of a minor.”12 The district court held that
basic language and common sense indicates to you then
indecent liberties with a child is sexual abuse of a
minor . . .
And then reading this statute, it would be clear to this
Court that this is sexual abuse of a minor. And that it
would be the common sense to read as to what the actions
would be to violate this statute.
The government argues that the district court’s “common sense”
approach is correct and should prevail.
Izaguirre’s reliance on Calderon-Pena, Vargas-Duran, and
Rodriguez-Rodriguez is misplaced. In those cases, we considered
whether the underlying statute of conviction “has as an element the
use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force against
another.”13 Here, we do not decide whether a violation of the North
Carolina child indecency statute has force as an element. Thus, we
12
See, e.g., United States v. Zavala-Sustaita, 214 F.3d
601, 604 (5th Cir. 2000) (“The best ‘ordinary, contemporary,
common’ reading of the phrase ‘sexual abuse of a minor’ is that
it encompasses a violation of Texas Penal Code § 21.11(a)(2)
[sexual indecency with a child by exposure].”).
13
The previous Guidelines, under which we decided these
three cases, defined “crime of violence” in two parts. The first
section defined “crime of violence” as a violation of state,
federal or local law that “has as an element” the use of force.
See U.S. SENTENCING GUIDELINES, § 2L1.2, cmt. n.1(B)(I) (2002). The
second definition included the enumerated offenses. See id. at
cmt. n.1(B)(II). The 2003 Guidelines, under which the district
court sentenced Izaguirre, combined the two definitions into one
comment, although it kept the same wording. See id., cmt.
n.1(B)(iii) (2003). Thus, although the two sections are now one,
there is no substantive change to the definition of “crime of
violence” in the Guidelines.
7
need not find that the elements of a violation under Section 14-
202.1(a)(1) coincide with those of “sexual abuse of a minor”
because “sexual abuse of a minor” is a specifically enumerated
offense.14 Our analysis is not —— as the underlying statutes at
issue were in cases such as Calderon-Pena —— contingent on whether
14
See United States v. Sarmiento–Funes, 374 F.3d 336, 338
(5th Cir. 2004) (“An offense can be a ‘crime of violence’ either
because it has as an element the use of force under paragraph (I)
or because it fits within the enumerated list in paragraph
(II).”); Rodriguez-Rodriguez, 388 F.3d at 467 (“Because burglary
of a building and [unauthorized use of a motor vehicle] are not
among the offenses specifically enumerated in Application Note
1(B)(ii)(II), they are crimes of violence only if the statutory
definitions have as an element ‘the use, attempted use, or
threatened use of physical force against the person of
another.”).
Although Izaguirre is correct that we have never condoned an
individualized analysis of the defendant’s conduct which lead to
the underlying conviction, we have condoned an examination of the
underlying charging papers in addition to the analysis we perform
on the language of the statute. See, e.g., Calderon-Pena, 383
F.3d at 258 n.5 (“Many sentencing provisions lack the ‘as an
element’ language at issue here, and we have permitted broader
uses of charging papers in such cases.”); United States v.
Rodriguez-Duberney, 326 F.3d 613, 617 (5th Cir. 2003) (“From
Taylor and Allen, we therefore conclude that in the case of a
statute such as the one at issue here, where the underlying
conduct may include conduct that would make the defendant
eligible for an enhancement, the district court does not err when
it looks to the underlying indictment for guidance.”); cf.
Shepard v. United States, —— U.S. ——, 125 S. Ct. 1254, 1257
(2005) (holding that under the Armed Criminal Career Act a
district court “determining the character of an admitted burglary
is generally limited to examining the statutory definition,
charging document, written plea agreement, transcript of plea
colloquy, and any explicit factual finding by the trial judge to
which the defendant assented.”). In any event, the state
indictment here is of no use to us because it merely tracks the
language of Section 14-202.1(a)(1).
8
a particular element is encompassed within the underlying statute.15
Thus, a common sense approach to the question satisfies us here.
In other words, we must determine whether a violation of Section
14-202.1 constitutes “sexual abuse of a minor” as that term is
understood in its “ordinary, contemporary, [and] common” meaning.16
The parties do not dispute that a violation of Section 14-
202(a)(1) involves a minor. The dispute here turns on the term
“sexual abuse.” As “sexual abuse” is not defined by the Sentencing
Guidelines, we look first to its plain, ordinary meaning.17 Black’s
Law Dictionary defines “sexual abuse” as “[a]n illegal sex act,
esp[ecially] one performed against a minor by an adult.”18
Webster’s Third New International Dictionary defines “sexual” as
“of, relating to, or associated with sex as a characteristic of an
15
See, e.g., United States v. Rayo-Valdez, 302 F.3d 314,
316 (5th Cir. 2002) (“Sexual abuse of a minor —— forcible or not
—— constitutes a crime of violence. So do all the other offenses
listed in subparagraph II, regardless of their elements under
various state laws.) (emphasis added) (citations omitted).
16
Zavala-Sustaita, 214 F.3d at 604; see also United States
v. Dominguez-Ochoa, 386 F.3d 639, 642-43 (5th Cir. 2004) (“Taylor
instructs that where, as here, the enhancement provision does not
specifically define the enumerated offense, we must define it
according to its generic, contemporary meaning, and should rely
on a uniform definition, regardless of the labels employed by the
various States criminal codes.”) (citations and quotations
omitted).
17
Vargas-Duran, 356 F.3d at 602.
18
BLACK’S LAW DICTIONARY 10 (8th ed. 2004). Black’s does not
define “sex act.”
9
organic being.”19 It is therefore clear that a Section 14-
202.1(a)(1) violation is sexual because it must have sexual arousal
or gratification as its purpose.20
Less clear is whether every violation of Section 14-
202.1(a)(1) constitutes “abuse.” Webster’s defines “abuse” as to
“take unfair or undue advantage of” or “to use or treat so as to
injure, hurt, or damage.”21 In Zavala-Sustaita, we held that a
violation of Texas Penal Code § 21.11(a)(2) —— the Texas indecency
by exposure statute —— constituted “sexual abuse of a minor” even
though the defendant, by exposing himself, did not physically touch
the minor.22 There, we reasoned that, even though the defendant
never caused physical harm, “[t]he act [was] ‘abusive’ because of
the psychological harm inflicted irrespective of the presence of
physical injury.”23 Thus, we reasoned that “abuse” involved either
physical or psychological harm to the minor.24
We hold that the conduct criminalized by Section 14-
202.1(a)(1) constitutes “sexual abuse of a minor,” as we generally
understand that term. Gratifying or arousing one’s sexual desires
19
WEBSTER’S THIRD NEW INTERNATIONAL DICTIONARY 2082 (1986).
20
See N.C. GEN. STAT. § 14-202.1(a)(1) (“. . . for the
purpose of arousing or gratifying sexual desire.”).
21
WEBSTER’S THIRD NEW INTERNATIONAL DICTIONARY 8 (1986)
22
214 F.3d at 605.
23
Id.
24
See id.
10
in the actual or constructive presence of a child is sexual abuse
of a minor.25 Taking indecent liberties with a child to gratify
one’s sexual desire constitutes “sexual abuse of a minor” because
it involves taking undue or unfair advantage of the minor and
causing such minor psychological —— if not physical —— harm.26
Izaguirre concedes that a physical act is not required for
conduct to be violative of the North Carolina statute. He contends,
however, that Section 14-202.1(a)(1) encompasses a broader range of
conduct than that prohibited by the Sentencing Guidelines. In sum,
Izaguirre argues that, in addition to criminalizing conduct that
constitutes “sexual abuse of a minor,” Section 14-202.1(a)(1) also
encompasses conduct that does not. Izaguirre cites to several North
Carolina decisions to support this argument.27 Attempting to
distinguish our prior holding in Zavala-Sustaita, Izaguirre argues
that there is no requirement under Section 14-202.1(a)(1) “that the
sexual content of the act, or, indeed, the act itself be made known
25
See, e.g., United States v. Baron-Medina, 187 F.3d 1144,
1147 (9th Cir. 1999) (“The use of young children for the
gratification of sexual desires constitutes an abuse.”).
26
We note that the Eleventh Circuit’s definition of “sexual
abuse of a minor” is equally applicable here: “[T]he phrase
‘sexual abuse of a minor’ means a perpetrator’s physical or
nonphysical misuse or maltreatment of a minor for a purpose
associated with sexual gratification.” United States v. Padilla-
Reyes, 247 F.3d 1158, 1163 (11th Cir. 2001).
27
See State v. McClees, 424 S.E.2d 687, 689-91 (N.C. 1993)
(holding that defendant who videotaped minor in dressing room
violated Section 14-202.1 even though minor did not know of
videotaping).
11
to the minor victim.” Thus, he urges that because there exists
conduct that violates Section 14-202.1(a)(1) but causes no physical
or psychological harm to the minor, Section 14-202.1(a)(1) sweeps
too broadly and the conduct prohibited by the North Carolina
statute cannot constitute “sexual abuse of a minor” as a matter of
law. To support this asertion, Izaguirre proffers the example a
shoe- or foot-fetishist who steals “a teenage girl’s shoe while she
s[its] barefoot on the grass. This act would be an ‘improper’
‘liberty,’ committed in the presence of the minor, which act
provided sexual gratifications to the perpetrator —— but it would
not be what most people understand as ‘sexual abuse of a minor.’”
Izaguirre also points out that the North Carolina courts that
have interpreted Section 14-202.1(a)(1) have done so broadly,
specifically noting that the indecent liberties statute was enacted
“to encompass more types of deviant behavior, giving children
broader protection than available under other statutes proscribing
sexual acts.”28 Indeed, as Izaguirre observes, the North Carolina
courts have interpreted Section 14-202.1(a)(1) so broadly as to
include almost any indecent or improper act that provides sexual
gratification to the actor.29
28
State v. Etheridge, 352 S.E.2d 673, 682 (N.C. 1987);
State v. Every, 578 S.E.2d 642, 648 (N.C. Ct. App. 2003) (citing
Etheridge).
29
See State v. Hartness, 391 S.E.2d 177, 180 (N.C. 1990)
(“The evil the legislature sought to prevent in this context was
the defendant’s performance of any immoral, improper, or indecent
act in the presence of a child ‘for the purpose of arousing or
12
In similar cases, when we have been called on to determine
whether a violation of a state statute constitutes a specifically
enumerated offense under Application Note (1)(B)(iii), we have held
that when the enumerated offense under the Guidelines encompasses
a narrower range of conduct than that prohibited by the state
statute, we cannot hold as a matter of law that the sentencing
enhancement is proper.30 In other words, when the statute of
conviction encompasses prohibited behavior that is not within the
plain, ordinary meaning of the enumerated offense, we cannot uphold
a sentence on that ground alone.31
Nevertheless, Izaguirre’s foot-fetishist example, although
superficially persuasive, misses the mark and reads too much into
Section 14-202.1(a)(1). Izaguirre’s example fails because he reads
gratifying sexual desire.’”); Every, 578 S.E.2d at 648 (“Not only
do these decisions demonstrate that a variety of acts may be
considered indecent and may be performed to provide sexual
gratification to the actor, they also demonstrate the scope of
the statute’s protection: to encompass more types of deviant
behavior and provide children with broader protection than that
available under statutes proscribing other sexual acts.”)
(citations and quotations omitted).
30
See United States v. Sarmiento-Funes, 374 F.3d 336, 345
(5th Cir. 2004) (holding that enumerated offense “forcible sex
offense” encompassed narrower conduct than that prohibited by
state statute and thus court could not affirm sentence on that
basis); see also United States v. Palomares-Candela, 104 Fed.
Appx. 957, 960-61, 2004 WL 1570359, at *3 (5th Cir. Jul 14, 2004)
(unpublished disposition) (following Sarmiento-Flores to hold
that Colorado second-degree sexual assault conviction not
“forcible sex offense” because state violation encompassed
broader conduct than “forcible sex offense.”).
31
Sarmiento-Flores, 374 F.3d at 345.
13
too broadly the statutory language “for the purpose of arousing or
gratifying sexual desire.” The North Carolina courts that have
treated Section 14-202.1(a)(1) have noted that its purpose is to
protect children from “overt sexual acts,” not merely some vague,
ethereal sentiment on the part of the perpetrator.32 Indeed, as the
North Carolina Supreme Court has said, “[d]efendant’s purpose for
committing such act is the gravamen of this offense.”33 If we were
to adopt Izaguirre’s argument, we would be hard-pressed to find an
act that did not violate Section 14-202.1(a)(1); but we will not
interpret a statute in a fashion that will produce absurd results.34
For this reason, we reject Izaguirre’s argument and hold that a
violation of Section 14-202.1(a)(1) constitutes “sexual abuse of a
minor” for purposes of the sentencing enhancement in Sentencing
Guidelines § 2L1.2.35
32
See State v. Every, 578 S.E.2d 642, 648 (N.C. Ct. App.
2003) (“The breadth of the conduct that has been held violative
of the statute indicates a recognition by our courts of ‘the
significantly greater risk of psychological damage to an
impressionable child from overt sexual acts . . . )(quoting State
v. Hicks, 339 S.E.2d 806, 809 (N.C. Ct. App. 1986)) (emphasis
added).
33
Hartness, 391 S.E.2d at 567.
34
See United States v. Female Juvenile, 103 F.3d 14, 16-17
(5th Cir. 1996)(“Axiomatic in statutory interpretation is the
principle that laws should be construed to avoid an absurd or
unreasonable result.”).
35
Our conclusion is buttressed by the Eleventh Circuit’s
finding in Bahar v. Ashcroft that a violation of Section 14-202.1
constitutes “sexual abuse of a minor” for purposes of 8 U.S.C. §
1101(a)(43)(A). 264 F.3d 1309 (11th Cir. 2001); see also United
States v. Gonzalez-Michel, 112 Fed. Appx. 261, 262, 2004 WL
14
 2. Unconstitutionality of 8 U.S.C. §§ 1326(b)(1) & (2)
Izaguirre also insists that 8 U.S.C. §§ 1326(b)(1) and (2) are
unconstitutional in light of Apprendi v. New Jersey.36 Izaguirre
concedes that this argument is foreclosed by Almendarez-Torres v.
United States.37 Apprendi did not overrule Almendarez-Torres,38 and
we are required to follow it “unless and until the Supreme Court
itself determines to overrule it.”39 Thus, this argument has no
merit.
III. CONCLUSION
We affirm the district court’s enhancement of Izaguirre’s
sentence and hold that a violation of North Carolina General
Statute § 14-202.1(a)(1) constitutes “sexual abuse of a minor” for
purposes of the “crime of violence” enhancement in Sentencing
Guidelines § 2L1.2. We further reject Izaguirre’s Apprendi
argument as foreclosed by the Supreme Court’s opinion in
Almendarez-Torres.
2321971, at *1 (4th Cir. Oct. 14 2004) (noting that “Gonzalez-
Michel does not dispute that the offense [a violation of Section
14-202.1] constitutes sexual abuse of a minor.”).
36
530 U.S. 466 (2000).
37
523 U.S. 224 (1998).
38
See Apprendi, 530 U.S. at 489-90; United States v.
Garcia-Mejia, —— F.3d. ——, 2004 WL 2937670, at *2 (5th Cir. Dec.
20, 2004); United States v. Dabeit, 231 F.3d 979, 984 (5th Cir.
2000).
39
Dabeit, 231 F.3d at 984 (internal quotation marks and
citation omitted).
15
AFFIRMED.
16