United States v. Lopez

── United States v. Lopez ── Court: Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Date: April 14, 2026 Category: Direct Criminal Case: 25-50395 Document: 67-1 Page: 1 Date Filed: 04/14/2026 United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ____________ United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit No. 25-50395 FILED April 14, 2026 Summary Calendar ____________ Lyle W. Cayce Clerk United States of America, Plaintiff—Appellee, versus Rosezzettea Lee Lopez, Defendant—Appellant. ______________________________ Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas USDC No. 2:24-CR-248-1 ______________________________ Before Jones, Duncan, and Douglas, Circuit Judges. Per Curiam: * Rosezzettea Lee Lopez challenges the sufficiency of the evidence supporting her convictions for conspiracy to transport undocumented individuals, in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(1)(A)(v)(I) and (B)(i), and transportation of undocumented individuals for the purpose of commercial advantage or private financial gain, in violation of 8 U.S.C. _____________________ * This opinion is not designated for publication. See 5th Cir. R. 47.5. Case: 25-50395 Document: 67-1 Page: 2 Date Filed: 04/14/2026 No. 25-50395 § 1324(a)(1)(A)(ii) and (B)(i). She also raises several constitutional claims for the first time on appeal. We AFFIRM. I On January 12, 2024, Lopez drove her pickup truck to a United States Border Patrol checkpoint near Eagle Pass, Texas. Her boyfriend, Edward Flores, and four other individuals were also in the vehicle. After detecting the odor of marijuana, agents directed the vehicle to a secondary inspection area. An immigration check revealed that Lopez and Flores were United States citizens, but that the four other occupants were unlawfully in the United States without documentation. All were arrested and transported to a border patrol station. Lopez waived her Miranda 1 rights, agreed to speak with law enforcement, and consented to a search of her cellphone. Agents conducted three recorded interviews with Lopez. She explained that she had lost her job in December 2023 and applied for a driver position posted online by an individual she knew as “Josh Drivers.” Josh described the job as picking up and transporting people to different locations. Lopez began picking up people in the Houston area, and Josh later told her additional jobs were available involving people from El Salvador and Venezuela. She received “pings” showing pickup locations, and Josh paid her in cash or through her WhatsApp account. As for the four individuals found at the checkpoint, Lopez initially stated that after an original passenger did not appear, Flores encountered the group at a casino, and they requested a ride to Austin. She denied knowing they were undocumented and stated no monetary arrangements were made. In her final interview, however, Lopez abandoned the casino story and stated _____________________ 1 Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966) 2 Case: 25-50395 Document: 67-1