This case is primarily important because it conforms with 5th circuit law concerning the "Single Sentence Rule." As the case states "The single sentence rule instructs that whether to treat multiple prior sentences as a single sentence depends on whether they were separated by an intervening arrest, charged in the same instrument, or imposed on the same day;"

Vicente Cuevas-Lopez was sentenced for attempted illegal reentry after deportation in violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1326. Cuevas-Lopez, who is a citizen of Mexico, was ordered deported from the United States in 2004, and also deported several times between 2004 and 2015. Generally, sentence enhancements in federal cases are awarded for prior criminal convictions. Vicente Cuevas-Lopez was arrested on November 3, 2007 for two felony burglaries. The first burglary was reported on November 1, 2007, and the second was committed on November 3, 2007.

The Arizona felony conviction for the two burglaries included a 3.5 years in prison for each offense, and ordered to run consecutively, for a total of 7.0 years (and thus resulted in a cumulative sentence that was five years or more).  This aggregated seven-year sentence triggered the ten-level enhancement under Sentencing Guidelines § 2L1.2(b)(3)(A). Vicente Cuevas-Lopez' criminal category of 5 caused the cumulative potential sentence to have a range of 37 to 46 months instead of 30 to 37 months which would have been the case without the cumulative effect. The average difference of the ranges would have been (41.5-33.5)/2 =  8 months, which is the effect of the "Single Sentence Rule."

It should be noted that a conviction under 8 U.S.C. § 1326 is capped at 2 years unless other specified crimes (other than an illegal reentry offense) are brought into play.  Repeated 8 U.S.C. § 1326 convictions without interaction with other convictions of other specified crimes (other than an illegal reentry offense) cannot produce a sentence greater than two years. Therefore

Criminal History points in the row of the sentencing table range from 0-13+ such that even under the influence of favorable adjustments, it could take 7 previous convictions for an 8 U.S.C. § 1326 violation to produce a first sentence of 2 years in length. Criminal history points are determined under §4A1.1 of the sentencing guidelines:(a)(1 point for a prior sentence), (b)(2 points for imprisonment from 60 days to one year, or (c)(3 points for imprisonment exceeding 13 months).

Most federal crime rapidly accelerates into significant sentence enhancements with repeated behavior violative of the same crime. 8 U.S.C. § 1326 (illegal reentry offenses) is a general exception.  8 U.S.C. § 1326 excludes offense level enhancements for past felonies for illegal reentry offenses (see U.S. Sentencing Guidelines §2L1.2.(b)(2)).

Accelerated potential  for enhancements (high maximum sentence caps) for re-entry under 8 U.S.C. § 1326 occur for more serious non-reentry past criminal offenses.  Higher maximums include U.S.C. § 1326(b)(1) "three or more misdemeanors involving, drugs, crimes against the person, or both", or  preceded by any (non-aggravated) felony; (maximum is 10 years); or U.S.C. § 1326(b)(2) any aggravated felony; (maximum is 20 years); or U.S.C. § 1326 (b)(3) & (b)(4) for various specified grounds that raise the maximum to 10 years.