Case Explained: USA V. LOPEZ

Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Filed: 2026-07-28 Docket: 1:22-cr-00291- The Ninth Circuit vacated the sentence imposed on Jonathan Lopez following his guilty plea to possessing a firearm as a prohibited person in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1) and remanded the case for resentencing. The court held that prior convictions under California Penal Code § 273.5 do not categorically qualify as “crimes of violence” under U.S.S.G. § 4B1.2(a), and therefore the district court erred in applying the two-level sentencing enhancement under U.S.S.G. § 2K2.1(a)(2). The court’s decision is based on the Supreme Court’s ruling in *Borden v. United States* and the Ninth Circuit’s en banc decision in *United States v. Gomez*, which establish that to qualify as a categorical crime of violence under the elements clause, an offense must require a mens rea greater than recklessness as to the use of force directed at another person. The court determined that California Penal Code § 273.5 is a general intent crime that requires only the mens rea of intending to commit the assaultive act, rather than an intent or knowledge that the use of force is directed at another person. Consequently, the court overruled its prior precedent holding that § 273.5 is categorically a crime of violence as clearly irreconcilable with *Borden* and *Gomez*. The practical consequence is that Lopez’s sentence must be recalculated without the enhancement for two prior felony crimes of violence. Do It For The Case Law is a news reporting service. Nothing in this episode constitutes legal advice.