Case: 22-50457 Document: 00516829053 Page: 1 Date Filed: 07/21/2023 United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit FILED July 21, 2023 No. 22-50457 Lyle W. Cayce Clerk United States of America, Plaintiff—Appellee, versus Ivan Mendoza, Defendant—Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas USDC No. 3:21-CR-1492 Before Higginbotham, Smith, and Engelhardt, Circuit Judges. Per Curiam:* Ivan Mendoza pled guilty to assaulting a federal officer, transporting aliens for profit, and aiding and abetting to transport aliens for profit. Mendoza was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment for the assault charge (the statutory maximum for the assault offense charged) and 27 months’ imprisonment for each of the two transporting offenses, all of which were to be served concurrently. Mendoza challenges multiple sentencing * This opinion is not designated for publication. See 5th Cir. R. 47.5. Case: 22-50457 Document: 00516829053 Page: 2 Date Filed: 07/21/2023 No. 22-50457 adjustments as well as the district court’s decision not to group all of the charges together. We AFFIRM. I. A. Shortly after midnight on August 11, 2021, Mendoza was driving a Jeep with a female passenger in the front seat when he was stopped at an immigration checkpoint in El Paso, Texas. Mendoza answered immigration officers’ questions, including those posed to his companion. A United States Border Patrol agent asked the passenger to exit the vehicle and, upon her doing so, proceeded to ask her questions regarding her citizenship. Mendoza remained inside the parked car. Eventually, the passenger admitted to immigration officers that she was a Guatemalan citizen and lacked authorization to enter the United States. After instructing the passenger to enter the building, the agents approached the driver’s side of the Jeep. When agents attempted to open the driver’s side doors, Mendoza started his engine and began driving away. 1 Ignoring commands to stop moving, Mendoza fled, “dragging [an] agent for a few feet [and] causing him to fall to the ground.” Border Patrol agents followed Mendoza onto the highway “with their emergency equipment on. The chase continued for a few miles until [the] agents lost visual of the vehicle’s brake lights,” prompting them to “turn[] off their emergency equipment, terminate[] pursuit, and return[] to the checkpoint.” 1 The PSR notes that Mendoza first put the car in reverse and backed up in the direction of Border Patrol agents, though Mendoza challenged that. Video from the incident confirms Mendoza’s recitation. Ultimately, this factual dispute is immaterial to the challenges at issue. 2 Case: 22-50457 Document: 00516829053 Page: 3 Date Filed: 07/21/2023 No. 22-50457 Later that day, agents found Mendoza’s Jeep at a residence in El Paso and observed Mendoza driving the vehicle. When an agent attempted to arrest Mendoza, “Mendoza began swinging his arms free while yelling at the agents. After a brief struggle, agents handcuffed Mendoza and he was read and informed of his rights.” Following his arrest, Mendoza admitted that he had been paid to transport his travel companion through …
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