United States v. Cortez-Diaz

Appellate Case: 25-3027 Document: 21-1 Date Filed: 08/19/2025 Page: 1

FILED United States Court of Appeals

Tenth Circuit

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

August 19, 2025

FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT

_________________________________ Christopher M. Wolpert

Clerk of Court UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff - Appellee, v. No. 25-3027

(D.C. No. 2:11-CR-20031-JWL-1) JUAN MANUEL CORTEZ-DIAZ, (D. Kan.)

Defendant - Appellant.

_________________________________ ORDER AND JUDGMENT*

_________________________________ Before TYMKOVICH, BALDOCK, and FEDERICO, Circuit Judges.

_________________________________ Juan Manuel Cortez-Diaz, a federal prisoner proceeding pro se,1 appealed the district court’s January 28, 2025, denial of his motion to reduce his sentence. In this initial motion to the district court, Cortez-Diaz requested a sentence reduction because he is “eligible for application of the sentencing amendments” to the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and because the jury that

Appellate Case: 25-3027 Document: 21-1 Date Filed: 08/19/2025 Page: 2 convicted him did not make the “requisite findings of fact regarding drug quantity.” R. I at 401. The district court denied his motion because the amendments were inapplicable, and it was without jurisdiction to consider the collateral attack on Cortez-Diaz’s conviction. Cortez-Diaz timely appealed.

On June 5, 2025, however, Cortez-Diaz informed this court that he was “withdrawing his motion to file a brief that’s due on June 11, 2025.” Doc. 11 at 1. In this same document, Cortez-Diaz stated that he would be filing a certificate of appealability about another case or issue.

On June 5, we instructed Cortez-Diaz to file a brief and all required documents. Doc. 12. We denied his motion “withdrawing his motion to file a brief” without prejudice, and instructed Cortez-Diaz to file a motion for voluntary dismissal of the appeal under Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 42(b) by June 11, 2025. Id.

On June 10, Cortez-Diaz requested “[p]ermission to file [a] certificate of appealability under 28 U.S.C. § 2255[.]” Doc. 13 at 1.2 We again instructed Cortez-Diaz to file an opening brief and a motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis by June 23.

On June 30, Cortez-Diaz filed an opening brief along with a motion to proceed in forma pauperis. In his brief, Cortez-Diaz does not challenge the

Appellate Case: 25-3027 Document: 21-1 Date Filed: 08/19/2025 Page: 3 district court’s denial of his motion for a sentence reduction, but instead raises arguments under the Sixth Amendment regarding his sentence and whether a jury found him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt on Counts One, Four, and Five of the Indictment. Doc. 16-1 at 1. In failing to challenge the grounds for the district court’s denial of his motion for a sentence reduction, Cortez-Diaz has waived any argument for reversing the district court’s decision. United States v. Barrera-Landa, 964 F.3d 912, 918 n.5 (10th Cir. 2020).

Accordingly, we AFFIRM. To the extent necessary, we deny a certificate of appealability. Cortez-Diaz’s motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis is granted. All other pending motions are denied as moot.

Entered for the Court Richard E.N. Federico Circuit Judge