United States v. Perez

Case: 21-50310 Document: 00516410123 Page: 1 Date Filed: 07/27/2022

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit FILED July 27, 2022 No. 21-50310 Lyle W. Cayce Clerk United States of America, Plaintiff—Appellee, versus Gabriel Perez, Defendant—Appellant.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas USDC No. 7:07-CR-119-4

Before Richman, Chief Judge, and Higginbotham and Elrod, Circuit Judges.

Per Curiam:* Gabriel Perez filed a motion for a reduced sentence under § 404 of the First Step Act of 2018. The district court denied his motion but referenced inapplicable policy statements which left the grounds for its decision unclear.

Case: 21-50310 Document: 00516410123 Page: 2 Date Filed: 07/27/2022

No. 21-50310

Perez appealed. We ordered a remand to the district court for the limited purpose of allowing the court to enter reasons for denying Perez’s motion. 1 The district court again entered an order denying Perez’s motion, clarifying that its previous reference to “the applicable policy statements issued by the Sentencing Guidelines” was inadvertent. The district court detailed its reasons for denying Perez’s motion and also affirmatively stated that it “consider[ed] the applicable factors provided in Section 404 of the First Step Act and 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)” in reaching its decision. This is a sufficient explanation for the denial. 2 AFFIRMED.