U.S. v. Reyes-Bosque

Decision Date01 March 2010
Docket NumberNo. 08-50330.,No. 08-50253.,08-50253.,08-50330.
Citation596 F.3d 1017
PartiesUNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Emilio REYES-BOSQUE, aka Emilio Varela, Jose Luis Ramirez-Esqueda, Defendants-Appellants.
CourtU.S. Court of Appeals — Ninth Circuit

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of California, Roger T. Benitez, District Judge, Presiding. D.C. Nos. 3:05-cr-02239-BEN-1, 3:05-cr-02239-BEN-2.

Before: MARY M. SCHROEDER, EUGENE E. SILER, JR.,* and SANDRA S. IKUTA, Circuit Judges.

SILER, Senior Circuit Judge:

Emilio Reyes-Bosque was convicted and sentenced to 210-months' imprisonment for (1) aiding aggravated felon aliens to enter the United States, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1327; (2) conspiracy to bring in, transport and harbor illegal aliens, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(1)(A)(i), (ii), (iii), and (v)(I); (3) four counts of bringing in illegal aliens for financial gain ("brings to"), in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(2)(B)(ii); and (4) four counts of harboring illegal aliens, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(1)(A)(iii) and (v)(II). Jose Luis Ramirez-Esqueda was convicted and sentenced to a term of 48 months for six counts of harboring illegal aliens, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(1)(A)(iii) and (v)(II). Both defendants appeal the district court's denial of their individual motions to suppress evidence. Reyes-Bosque also challenges the sufficiency of the evidence to support his conviction, the admission of hearsay evidence at his trial, and the district court's denial of his motion for appointment of new counsel before his sentencing. We affirm.

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND
A. Facts Leading to Discovery of Stash House

Martha Ramirez-Elizondo, her father Pedro Montejano-Quintero, Adolfo Villagomez-Alonso, and approximately eighteen other smuggled aliens were housed at 362 Wilson Street, Unit 4, a two-bedroom unit near Brawley, California. Ramirez-Esqueda and Angel Rivas-Pozos, a codefendant who has not appealed his conviction or sentence, watched over the aliens. The aliens were told not to leave the house and not to make any noise. On the morning of December 2, 2005, Ramirez-Elizondo, Montejano-Quintero, and Villagomez-Alonso slipped out of Unit 4 when one of the guards went into the bathroom. While leaving the house, they ran into Ramirez-Esqueda, who told them not to leave. Ramirez-Elizondo had taken a knife from the kitchen, which she kept visible when they met Ramirez-Esqueda. Although Ramirez-Esqueda told them not to leave, they ignored him and left anyway. They went into Brawley, which was about two miles from Unit 4.

Border Patrol Agents Felipe Rodriguez and Luis Martinez observed the three aliens and followed them to Garcia's Market. Martinez approached Montejano-Quintero and Villagomez-Alonso, and identified himself as a Border Patrol agent. Montejano-Quintero and Villagomez-Alonso walked away from the agents and joined Ramirez-Elizondo inside Garcia's Market; the agents followed and asked them to come outside, where they asked to see their legal documents. After the aliens admitted that they did not have any documentation and that they were in the country illegally, the agents arrested them. When asked where they were coming from, Ramirez-Elizondo told the agents that they had escaped from a house a couple of miles away, and that one of the caretakers tried to prevent them from leaving. She told them that she had been there for a few days, was uncomfortable in the house, and did not know when she would get to leave. She also told the agents that there were approximately twenty more people in the house and offered to take the agents to the place where she had been held. Because Martinez knew that this particular block was dangerous, based on his knowledge that there had recently been a shootout in the area,1 the agents called for backup before going into any of the units. While waiting for backup, Martinez and Rodriguez, who were dressed in plain clothes, put on bullet-proof vests. Ramirez-Elizondo identified the last unit, Unit 4, as the place where she was held. She also told the agents that she did not want to go inside, because she was afraid.

After fifteen to twenty minutes, backup agent Robert Perez arrived. The three agents saw Rivas-Pozos, whom Ramirez-Elizondo identified as the caretaker of the house where they were held. Martinez approached Rivas-Pozos, identified himself as a Border Patrol agent, and asked him to identify his citizenship. Rivas-Pozos stated that he was a United States citizen and gave Martinez his identification, which listed his residence as 362 Wilson Street. He told Martinez, however, that he lived in El Centro, California, and that he was visiting his godfather, Reyes, who lived at 362 Wilson Street, Unit 3. After this conversation, the agents split up. Perez went to Unit 3 to corroborate Rivas-Pozos's story, while Martinez and Rodriguez went to Unit 4 to investigate the information Ramirez-Elizondo had provided. Units 3 and 4 are adjacent to each other, but are not adjoining.

B. Initial Search of Units 3 and 4

Rodriguez went to the front door of Unit 4, while Martinez went around to the back. After Rodriguez knocked on the door and identified himself as a Border Patrol agent, Martinez observed someone popping his head out a back window, then quickly pulling it back into the unit. Martinez relayed what he saw to Rodriguez, who entered the unit through an unlocked front door with his weapon drawn, told everyone to get down, and identified himself. Martinez entered the unit moments later. The agents went through the unit, gathered all eighteen occupants, and questioned them regarding their citizenship. Martinez stayed with the occupants until transport arrived to take them to processing, which was between thirty and sixty minutes after they entered Unit 4. The agents also gathered documents in plain view, including ledgers, maps, and a list of rules for drivers signed by Emilio Varela, one of Reyes-Bosque's aliases.

While Martinez and Rodriguez investigated Unit 4, Perez accompanied Rivas-Pozos to Unit 3. When they arrived at Unit 3, Rivas-Pozos knocked on the door; after about a minute, Perez knocked, again receiving no answer. At some point, Perez said "Border Patrol, open the door," or words to that effect. After several minutes of knocking, Reyes-Bosque's wife Carmen Guzman-Tinoco opened the door. Perez told her that he was a Border Patrol agent and was trying to find out whether Rivas-Pozos's godfather lived there. Perez also asked her for her identification. Guzman-Tinoco produced a Mexican Border Card, but did not have immigration documents. After Perez asked to speak with her husband, Reyes-Bosque came to the door. He denied that Rivas-Pozos was his godson and claimed that he was just a friend. He presented valid identification and immigration documents to Perez.

With this information, Perez called dispatch to conduct a record check on Reyes-Bosque. Agent Leyba, who heard the call over the radio, transmitted that he had previous run-ins with Reyes-Bosque. Perez then told Reyes-Bosque that he was arresting his wife for failure to carry immigration documents. He informed Guzman-Tinoco, who had given birth days earlier, that she could take her baby with her or leave him with her sister. He also told her that if she was going to "get the baby's stuff," he would need to go in the house with her to check for weapons, for his safety. She decided to take the baby with her, and Perez accompanied her into the house.

Perez entered Unit 3 after Guzman-Tinoco and Reyes-Bosque told him no one was inside the house besides them, Guzman-Tinoco's sister, and her sister's children. Perez testified that Guzman-Tinoco went throughout the entire house in order to get the baby's items ready. During Perez's sweep of the house, he discovered Ramirez-Esqueda, fully dressed, and hiding underneath some covers on a bed. When Perez asked him to identify himself, he stated that he was Reyes-Bosque's friend. Ramirez-Esqueda produced a Mexican passport and a valid visa upon Perez's request. Perez also performed a record check on him, which revealed that he had been arrested by the Border Patrol for alien smuggling in 2001.

C. Ramirez-Esqueda's Confessions

At some point, Perez instructed Ramirez-Esqueda to sit in the living room while the Border Patrol agents processed the situation. At that time, there were five Border Patrol agents—Rodriguez, Martinez, Perez, Leyba, and Castro—and several Brawley Police officers on the grounds; Leyba and Castro showed up after the other agents had entered both units. Without informing Ramirez-Esqueda of the Miranda warnings, Perez and Castro had a brief conversation with Ramirez-Esqueda while he was sitting in the living room before Perez took him outside for further questioning. During that brief conversation, they inquired as to his citizenship, his reason for being at the house, how he knew Reyes-Bosque, and whether he knew Rivas-Pozos. Ramirez-Esqueda stated that he was at the house to purchase a vehicle, although he could not state which one, and that he knew Rivas-Pozos. After taking him outside, Perez asked him about his prior arrest and about his reason for visiting the house. After Ramirez-Esqueda claimed simply to be visiting, Perez said, "You were caught for...

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