FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
JUAN ZAMORA-MERAZ SENTENCED IN U.S. DISTRICT COURT
Bill Mercer, United States Attorney for the District of Montana, announced today that during a federal court session in Billings, on December 12, 2007, before U.S. District Judge Richard F. Cebull, JUAN ZAMORA-MERAZ, a citizen of Mexico, appeared for sentencing. ZAMORA-MERAZ was sentenced to a term of:
- Prison: 46 months
- Special Assessment: $100
- Supervised Release: 3 years
ZAMORA-MERAZ was sentenced in connection with his guilty plea to illegal re-entry of a previously deported alien.
In an Offer of Proof filed by the United States, the government stated it would have proved at trial the following:
On July 11, 2007, ZAMORA-MERAZ was encountered by a deputy with the Sweetgrass County Sheriff's Office when he was found sleeping inside his vehicle near Big Timber. ZAMORA-MERAZ claimed to be a legal permanent resident but was found to have several felony convictions, which was inconsistent with his claim.
ZAMORA-MERAZ then admitted he was an aggravated felon who had been previously deported on October 15, 2004, through Del Rio, Texas. ZAMORA-MERAZ had been deported after serving federal prison time for a drug conviction.
Further investigation revealed that ZAMORA-MERAZ did not have the consent of the Attorney General or his successor, the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, to re-enter the United States after having been deported.
Because there is no parole in the federal system, the "truth in sentencing" guidelines mandate that ZAMORA-MERAZ will likely serve all of the time imposed by the court. In the federal system, ZAMORA-MERAZ does have the opportunity to earn a sentence reduction for "good behavior." However, this reduction will not exceed 15% of the overall sentence.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Marcia K. Hurd prosecuted the case for the United States.
The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
