United States v. Stowbunenko-Saitschenko
United States v. Stowbunenko-Saitschenko
Opinion of the Court
MEMORANDUM
Oleh Rostyslaw Stowbunenko-Saitschenko (“Stowbunenko”) appeals his conviction and sentence for Bringing in Illegal Aliens to the United States under 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(2) and his conviction for Encouraging Illegal Aliens to Enter the United States under 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(1)(A)(iv) and (a)(1)(A)(v)(I). These convictions resulted from an incident in which Stowbunenko, a naturalized American citizen who claims to be a member of an Indian tribe known as the Little Shell Pembina Band of North America (“PNLSB”), issued certificates of PNLSB membership to two Mexi
On appeal, Stowbunenko contends that (1) he and the Mexican nationals had a right to cross the U.S.-Mexico border because of their tribal membership as a result of either (a) the PNLSB’s aboriginal right of passage or (b) the tribe’s inherent sovereign rights,
On all matters of substance we affirm the district court. The case is, however, remanded for the limited purpose of correcting the judgment to reflect that Stowbunenko’s conviction for Bringing in Illegal Aliens to the United States under 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(2) is a misdemeanor rather than a felony.
DISCUSSION
We reject Stowbunenko’s claim that his convictions are invalid because the Mexican nationals, as PNLSB members, had an aboriginal and a sovereign right to cross the U.S.-Mexieo border.
Though the convictions stand, a remand is necessary to correct a clerical error in the district court’s judgment. Stowbunenko correctly notes that the district court erroneously entered his conviction for Bringing in Illegal Aliens to the United States as a felony when it is in fact a class A misdemeanor. See 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(2)(A); 18 U.S.C. § 3559(a)(6). A
AFFIRMED IN PART AND REMANDED IN PART.
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and may not be cited to or by the courts of this circuit except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3.
. Stowbunenko’s brief does not state this claim with precision, but the issue is considered here for the sake of completeness.
. It is far from clear that the PNLSB is a recognized Indian tribe and that the Mexican nationals are members. However, these facts are assumed for purposes of argument.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- The UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff—Appellee v. Oleh Rostyslaw STOWBUNENKO-SAITSCHENKO, Defendant—Appellant
- Status
- Published