The following excerpt is from U.S. v. Silvas-Norzagaray, 62 F.3d 1426 (9th Cir. 1995):
Silvas contends that the district court erred in finding him guilty of conspiring to distribute 1,000 pounds of marijuana. "[T]he district court's factual determinations [are reviewed] for clear error and its legal interpretations of the Guidelines [are reviewed] de novo." United States v. Castaneda, 9 F.3d 761, 769 (9th Cir.1993), cert. denied, 114 S.Ct. 1564 (1994). Under this standard, an appellate court is "bound to accept a lower court's finding of fact unless [it has] a definite and firm conviction that a mistake has been committed." United States v. Ramos, 923 F.2d 1346, 1356 (9th Cir.1991).
The above passage should not be considered legal advice. Reliable answers to complex legal questions require comprehensive research memos. To learn more visit www.alexi.com.