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  • United States v. Hernandez, 4th Cir. (2008)

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    The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed Luis Alonzo Hernandez's conviction for illegally reentering the United States after being deported for committing an aggravated felony. The court found that the district court properly granted the government's motion in limine to prevent Hernandez from asserting an entrapment by estoppel defense at trial. To assert this defense, a defendant must demonstrate that the government actively misled him into believing the prohibited conduct was permissible, but Hernandez's evidence failed to establish this level of assurance from the government. As such, the appeals court affirmed the district court's judgment.

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    Filed: 2008-07-14 Precedential Status: Non-Precedential Docket: 08-4094

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    The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed Luis Alonzo Hernandez's conviction for illegally reentering the United States after being deported for committing an aggravated felony. The court found that the district court properly granted the government's motion in limine to prevent Hernandez from asserting an entrapment by estoppel defense at trial. To assert this defense, a defendant must demonstrate that the government actively misled him into believing the prohibited conduct was permissible, but Hernandez's evidence failed to establish this level of assurance from the government. As such, the appeals court affirmed the district court's judgment.

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    4 views3 pages

    United States v. Hernandez, 4th Cir. (2008)

    Uploaded by

    Scribd Government Docs
    The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed Luis Alonzo Hernandez's conviction for illegally reentering the United States after being deported for committing an aggravated felony. The court found that the district court properly granted the government's motion in limine to prevent Hernandez from asserting an entrapment by estoppel defense at trial. To assert this defense, a defendant must demonstrate that the government actively misled him into believing the prohibited conduct was permissible, but Hernandez's evidence failed to establish this level of assurance from the government. As such, the appeals court affirmed the district court's judgment.

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    of 3

    UNPUBLISHED

    UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS


    FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

    No. 08-4094

    UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,


    Plaintiff - Appellee,
    v.
    LUIS ALONZO HERNANDEZ, a/k/a Jose Mario Ortiz,
    Defendant - Appellant.

    Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern
    District of Virginia, at Alexandria. Gerald Bruce Lee, District
    Judge. (1:07-cr-00310-GBL-1)

    Submitted:

    June 17, 2008

    Decided:

    July 14, 2008

    Before NIEMEYER, MICHAEL, and KING, Circuit Judges.

    Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

    Lance D. Gardner, LAWRENCE, SMITH & GARDNER, Fairfax, Virginia, for


    Appellant. Chuck Rosenberg, United States Attorney, Tino Lisella,
    Special Assistant United States Attorney, Alexandria, Virginia, for
    Appellee.

    Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.

    PER CURIAM:
    Luis Alonzo Hernandez appeals his jury conviction and
    thirty-three month sentence for reentering the United States after
    being deported for committing an aggravated felony, in violation of
    8 U.S.C. 1326 (2000).

    Hernandez claims the district court erred

    when it granted the Government's motion in limine, preventing him


    from asserting an entrapment by estoppel defense at trial. Finding
    no error, we affirm.
    A criminal defendant may assert an entrapment by estoppel
    defense when the government affirmatively assures him that certain
    conduct is lawful, the defendant thereafter engages in the conduct
    in

    reasonable

    reliance

    on

    those

    assurances,

    prosecution based upon the conduct ensues.


    U.S. 423, 438-39 (1959).
    however,

    defendant

    has

    and

    criminal

    See Raley v. Ohio, 360

    To be able to assert the defense,


    to

    show

    more

    than

    "vague

    or

    even

    contradictory" statements by the government; "he must demonstrate


    that there was 'active misleading' in the sense that the government
    actually told him that the proscribed conduct was permissible."
    United States v. Aquino-Chacon, 109 F.3d 936, 939 (4th Cir. 1997).
    (internal citation omitted).

    Because Hernandez's evidence failed

    to establish he was entitled to assert the entrapment by estoppel


    defense, we find that the district court properly granted the
    Government's motion in limine.

    - 2 -

    Accordingly, we affirm the district courts judgment. We


    dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions
    are adequately presented in the materials before the court and
    argument would not aid the decisional process.
    AFFIRMED

    - 3 -

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