U.S. v. Sanchez-Ramirez

Citation570 F.3d 75
Decision Date30 June 2009
Docket NumberNo. 08-1116.,08-1116.
PartiesUNITED STATES of America, Appellee, v. Cosme SANCHEZ-RAMIREZ, Defendant, Appellant.
CourtUnited States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (1st Circuit)

Michael Tumposky, with whom Stephen B. Hrones and Hrones, Garrity & Hedges, were on brief, for appellant.

Margaret D. McGaughey, Appellate Chief, with whom Paula D. Silsby, United States Attorney, was on brief, for appellee.

Before LYNCH, Chief Judge, FARRIS,* and HOWARD, Circuit Judges.

HOWARD, Circuit Judge.

Following a bench trial in which the district court rejected his insanity defense, appellant Cosme Sanchez-Ramirez ("Sanchez") was convicted of all three counts lodged against him: being a felon in possession of a firearm,1 making a false statement in the acquisition of a firearm,2 and making a false claim of citizenship.3 He was sentenced to 180 months' imprisonment. He posits two arguments on appeal. First, Sanchez claims that the district court erred in not ordering a competency hearing after the close of evidence and before closing arguments, in addition to the one ordered immediately after his arraignment. Second, he argues that the district court erroneously applied the minimum sentence mandated by the Armed Career Criminal Act ("ACCA") to him because certain prior burglary convictions in Florida were not "violent felonies" within the meaning of the ACCA. Finding the district court's decision not to order a second competency hearing well within its discretion, and its sentencing decision virtually on all fours with recent Supreme Court precedent, we affirm.

I. Factual Background

We recite the facts relevant to this appeal in the light most favorable to the verdict. United States v. Marin, 523 F.3d 24, 26 (1st Cir.2008). Sanchez was born in Cuba, and arrived in the United States at age sixteen in 1980 as part of the Mariel boatlift. His application for asylum was denied, and a deportation order issued. Cuba, however, refused to accept Mariel returnees, the deportation order was never executed, and Sanchez remained in the United States.

In April 2005, Sanchez attempted to purchase a handgun from a pawn shop and licensed firearms dealer in Bangor, Maine. A store employee, Orlando Frati, testified that he provided Sanchez with some assistance in filling out the required federal firearms purchase application, including pointing out to Sanchez that he had not answered a question seeking his citizenship status. Sanchez responded by writing "Yes, USA" on the form. He further answered that he was not a convicted felon, and that he was a Native American or Alaskan Native. All three answers were false.

Sanchez examined two pistols while in the store. He did not purchase either of them, but mentioned that he preferred the smaller of the two because it was easier to conceal and thus avoid suspicion or be readily available for use in any confrontation with police. He also posed in front of a mirror with a gun in his pocket. Sanchez produced a social security card, but did not have the necessary photo identification to make a purchase. After promising to return with the proper identification, Sanchez left in the same taxi in which he had arrived. Frati had noted the license plate number of the taxi as was his habit with waiting cabs.

After Sanchez left, Frati submitted the completed application to the National Instant Check System. After a delay, the application was denied. Because he was concerned about the denial in combination with Sanchez's concealment and police comments, Frati provided authorities with Sanchez's application form and a video from the store's surveillance system containing footage of Frati's interaction with Sanchez in the store. Investigation by an agent of the Bangor Police Department and federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives task force revealed that Sanchez had been convicted of, inter alia, four felonies—three in Florida and one in Georgia. Using the taxi's license number as a lead to locate him, authorities arrested Sanchez soon after in a local motel.

At a detention hearing shortly after his arrest, Sanchez's defense counsel moved for a psychiatric examination and competency hearing. The district court granted the motion, and Sanchez was transferred to a federal medical facility for evaluation. Given its central role in this appeal, we first turn to the record evidence relating to Sanchez's mental health.4

II. Mental health history

Sanchez has a lengthy history of mental health problems, the details of which are not in dispute.5 He testified that he tried to injure himself on two separate occasions in Cuba before he was ten years old and that he occasionally hears voices speaking to him "from another world." Sanchez recounted being hospitalized in Cuba when he was thirteen for purposes of a judicially-ordered mental health examination. Sanchez said that he was forced to leave Cuba in the Mariel boatlift because his mental health made him an undesirable in the eyes of Fidel Castro.

Sanchez's difficulties continued after his arrival in the United States. In 1984, he was hospitalized in California after cutting his wrists. In 1993, he was hospitalized in New York, after behaving erratically and "feeling like dead people were following" him. In 1999, Sanchez was hospitalized in North Carolina after he was found wandering on a highway. The record also reflects two suicide attempts in Virginia and Georgia between 2000 and 2002 which resulted in hospitalizations.

Sanchez was living with a friend in Portland, Maine prior to arriving in Bangor. While there, he suffered from depression and hallucinations. Sanchez was also hospitalized after police responded to a call that he was in possession of a knife and was threatening suicide. He was again hospitalized during his time in Portland when it was reported to police that he was trying to light a fire in the kitchen of a shelter where he was staying. He ultimately relocated to Bangor.

On the day prior to his attempted gun purchase, Sanchez testified that he was planning on leaving Maine and taking a bus to Atlanta, Georgia in order to seek medical attention there. He had been drinking before going to the bus station, where he met a man and a woman who convinced him that they could help him. Instead, the three spent time taking pills and drinking liquor, before the couple attempted to rob Sanchez. Although the robbery was unsuccessful, the couple left Sanchez on a Bangor street near the motel where he was eventually arrested.

Early the next morning, Sanchez took a taxi to a local hospital because he was not feeling well. He was denied treatment at the emergency room due to the smell of alcohol on his breath. Shortly thereafter, he began having a panic attack, which led to suicidal thoughts which prompted him to direct the cab driver to take him to a place to buy firearms.

III. Pre-trial proceedings

Pursuant to the district court's order, Sanchez was held at the Federal Medical Detention Center in Massachusetts for 45 days following his arraignment. During that time, licensed clinical psychologist Christine Scronce interviewed Sanchez for eight hours and conducted four hours of psychological testing in order to assess his competency to stand trial. She also collected Sanchez's medical history—both from records and his own recollection— and considered staff observations and evaluations. At the conclusion of her work, Dr. Scronce prepared a lengthy report and testified at a competency hearing before a Magistrate Judge. She concluded, among other things, that Sanchez exhibited "a general pattern of deceitful and manipulative behaviors," which she described as "hallmark signs of malingering." In particular, she noted that Sanchez often reported symptoms "for secondary gain," such as being hospitalized rather than jailed, or being allowed to receive meals in private.

Regarding the pending criminal proceedings, Scronce found that Sanchez had a good relationship with his attorney, understood the charges against him and had the ability to consult with counsel to aid in his defense. Accordingly, Scronce concluded that Sanchez was competent to stand trial. The Magistrate Judge, in addition to accepting Scronce's conclusions, noted that Sanchez acted appropriately during courtroom proceedings, and ultimately found Sanchez competent to proceed. That ruling has not been appealed.

Approximately one year later, in June 2006, defense counsel moved for another pretrial evaluation on the grounds that Sanchez was unreasonable and uncooperative. The motion was denied without prejudice, but an accompanying motion to continue the trial was granted in order to allow time to obtain additional medical records and give defense counsel an opportunity to review Sanchez's mental health history more fully and determine whether and to what extent to place his mental state in issue at trial. Defense counsel did not renew the motion before trial.

IV. Trial

A bench trial began in January 2007, lasting approximately four trial days. The trial proceeded uneventfully. Because Sanchez was interposing an insanity defense and also arguing that his mental health negated the required mens rea, the district court heard testimony from Dr. Scronce and from a defense expert. After the close of evidence, the parties submitted written trial briefs prior to scheduled final arguments in June. Three days prior to the scheduled arguments, defense counsel filed a third motion for a competency hearing. Counsel reported that Sanchez had stopped taking his prescribed medication and was having difficulty understanding the facts and issues relevant to his case. The court did not immediately rule on the motion. The trial court's post-trial Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law describe what followed:

When Mr. Ramirez arrived at the courthouse, he was beside himself. Prior to the arguments there was considerable banging in the holding cell near the...

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