United States v. Mathis

IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT
No. 01-11245
Conference Calendar
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
versus
GARY MATHIS,
Defendant-Appellant.
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Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Northern District of Texas
USDC No. 4:01-CR-56-2-E
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April 11, 2002
Before SMITH, DeMOSS, and PARKER, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:*
Gary Mathis appeals from his sentence for counterfeiting.
He contends that the district court erred by denying him an
adjustment for acceptance of responsibility and by adjusting his
offense level to 15, pursuant to U.S.S.G. § 2B5.1(b)(2), because
the bills he produced were not of sufficient quality to pass in
circulation.
Mathis does not dispute that he admitted to the probation
officer that he had possessed hallucinogenic mushrooms while he
was on release during the proceedings in the district court.
*
Pursuant to 5TH CIR. R. 47.5, the court has determined
that this opinion should not be published and is not precedent
except under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH CIR.
R. 47.5.4.
No. 01-11245
-2-
Mathis’s possession of an illegal controlled substance was
sufficient to support finding that he had not refrained from
criminal conduct. U.S.S.G. § 3E1.1, comment. (n. 1(b)). The
district court’s finding that Mathis had not accepted
responsibility was not clearly erroneous. United States v.
Watkins, 911 F.2d 983, 984 (5th Cir. 1990).
The case agent in Mathis’s case believed that the
counterfeit notes were good enough to pass into circulation. The
district court’s finding that the notes were good enough to pass
therefore was not clearly erroneous. United States v. Wyjack,
141 F.3d 181, 183-84 (5th Cir. 1998).
AFFIRMED.