Jaime Lopez-hernandez Sentenced in U.S. District Court
The United States Attorney's Office announced that during a federal court session in Billings, on August 19, 2010, before Chief U.S. District Judge Richard F. Cebull, JAIME LOPEZ-HERNANDEZ, a 32-year-old citizen of Mexico, appeared for sentencing. LOPEZ-HERNANDEZ was sentenced to a term of:
- Prison: 24 months
- Supervised Release: 1 year
LOPEZ-HERNANDEZ was sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to illegal re-entry after having been deported.
In an Offer of Proof filed by Assistant U.S. Attorney Marcia K. Hurd, the government stated it would have proved at trial the following:
On May 4, 2010, LOPEZ-HERNANDEZ was arrested and charged with criminal possession of drug paraphernalia and traffic violations in Glendive by a Montana Highway Patrol trooper. The trooper then contacted U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. An agent then contacted LOPEZ-HERNANDEZ, identified himself as an immigration agent and asked LOPEZ-HERNANDEZ as to his citizenship. LOPEZ-HERNANDEZ admitted to being a citizen and national of Mexico illegally present in the United States.
A review of immigration records and fingerprint comparisons revealed that LOPEZ-HERNANDEZ had had multiple encounters with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement dating back to 1997, with his final removal from the United States on March 3, 2007, through Laredo, Texas. When questioned, he admitted to having been previously removed from the United States and that he had not applied to the Secretary of Homeland Security to reenter the United States.
Further review of Immigration Records found no evidence that LOPEZ-HERNANDEZ had received permission from the Attorney General or the Secretary of Homeland Security to reenter the United States after having been removed.
Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that LOPEZ-HERNANDEZ will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, LOPEZ-HERNANDEZ does have the opportunity to earn a sentence reduction for "good behavior." However, this reduction will not exceed 15% of the overall sentence.
The investigation was a cooperative effort between the Montana Highway Patrol and U.S. Homeland Security Investigations.
