United States v. Combs ( 2023 )

Case: 22-10444 Document: 00516698874 Page: 1 Date Filed: 04/03/2023
United States Court of Appeals
for the Fifth Circuit
____________
United States Court of Appeals
Fifth Circuit
No. 22-10444
Summary Calendar FILED
____________ April 3, 2023
Lyle W. Cayce
United States of America, Clerk
Plaintiff—Appellee,
versus
Howard Leon Combs,
Defendant—Appellant.
______________________________
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Northern District of Texas
USDC No. 4:16-CR-54-1
______________________________
Before Wiener, Elrod, and Engelhardt, Circuit Judges.
Per Curiam: *
Defendant-Appellant Howard Leon Combs appeals the sentence
imposed following his guilty-plea conviction for possessing a firearm as a
felon. He insists that the district court erred by applying a four-level
enhancement under U.S.S.G. § 2K2.1(b)(6)(B) for possessing the firearm in
connection with his felony theft of a motor vehicle.
_____________________
*
This opinion is not designated for publication. See 5th Cir. R. 47.5.
Case: 22-10444 Document: 00516698874 Page: 2 Date Filed: 04/03/2023
No. 22-10444
Even if we assume that the district court procedurally erred in
applying this enhancement, the government has met its burden of showing
that any error was harmless. See United States v. Guzman-Rendon, 864 F.3d
409, 411 (5th Cir. 2017). The government convincingly demonstrated that
the district court would have imposed the same sentence absent the alleged
error for the same reasons that it provided at resentencing. See United States
v. Redmond, 965 F.3d 416, 420 (5th Cir. 2020). The judgment of the district
court is AFFIRMED.
2