U.S. v. Jackson
| Decision Date | 13 October 1995 |
| Docket Number | Nos. 94-3381,94-3639,s. 94-3381 |
| Citation | 67 F.3d 1359 |
| Parties | 43 Fed. R. Evid. Serv. 180 UNITED STATES of America, Appellee, v. Wallace Andre JACKSON, Appellant. UNITED STATES of America, Appellee, v. Vaniel GRAHAM, Appellant. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Eighth Circuit |
Jams E. Bobenhouse, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, argued, for the appellant Vaniel Graham.
Robert Teig, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, argued (Richard L. Murphy, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on the brief), for the appellee.
Before MAGILL, HEANEY, and MORRIS SHEPPARD ARNOLD, Circuit Judges.
These appeals arise from an investigation into a drug distribution conspiracy centered in Clinton, Iowa. Appellant Wallace Andre Jackson was tried and convicted of conspiracy and appeals both his conviction and his sentence. Appellant Vaniel Graham pleaded guilty to witness intimidation and firearms charges and now appeals the imposition of an increase in his sentencing offense level for obstruction of justice.
Wallace Andre Jackson was charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine base ("crack cocaine") between February 1991 and January 1994. A jury convicted Jackson on September 21, 1994.
The facts adduced at trial, taken in the light most favorable to the prosecution, see Glasser v. United States, 315 U.S. 60, 80, 62 S.Ct. 457, 469, 86 L.Ed. 680 (1942), indicate that Jackson was at the center of a small-scale drug distribution network based in Clinton, Iowa. Most of the testimony incriminating Jackson was given by co-conspirators who had agreed to plead guilty to drug trafficking charges. Among those who testified were Moses Jackson, a nephew of the defendant; Katherine Vazquez Guadalupe, a former girlfriend of the defendant; Daman Julian, a friend of the defendant; and Rhonda Morris, a former housemate of the defendant.
For the purposes of this appeal, the essential elements of their testimony can be summarized as follows. Moses Jackson stated that he sold crack cocaine for the defendant, and that he made trips on the defendant's behalf from Clinton to Chicago to obtain powder cocaine from a source there. Moses testified that he observed several others, including Daman Julian, Jack Evans, Mike Peters, and Keith Peters, selling crack cocaine in conjunction with the defendant. Moses explained that he, the defendant, and others would convert the powder cocaine to crack cocaine, "dice it up," and bag it for resale. Katherine Vazquez testified that she assisted the defendant with the transportation of cocaine from Chicago to Clinton and that the defendant provided the funds for vehicle rental. Vazquez, Jack Evans, and Daman Julian all testified that they sold crack cocaine for the defendant out of an apartment located at 205 1/2 Second Avenue South in Clinton.
In addition, testimony was given by several law enforcement officers who had executed search warrants during the period from 1991 to 1994. The police executed one such warrant on February 12, 1993, at 205 1/2 Second Avenue South, then occupied by Wallace Jackson. The police had been informed by the landlord that there had been an unusual amount of traffic in and out of the apartment. In the course of the search, police officers found the defendant and his brother in the living room along with sixty small bags of crack cocaine. One officer seized $717 in cash and $114 in food stamps from the defendant's pockets. Another officer found a ledger containing what appeared to be records of drug transactions.
The ledger was later identified by Katherine Vazquez as the book she used to record drug transactions for the defendant. Vazquez also testified that Jackson later confirmed his ownership of the drugs during a private conversation in which the defendant detailed his attempt to dispose of the crack cocaine when the police appeared at his door. In addition, the prosecution suggested at trial that Jackson's food stamps were derived from drug sales. Randy Dodson of the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals took the stand to state that the defendant had not received food stamps from the state of Iowa in February 1993.
Vazquez and Moses Jackson testified that after the search the defendant moved his base of operations to an apartment building known as "The Castle" located at 561 Fifth Avenue South in Clinton. Vazquez and Carrie Brown, the girlfriend of Moses Jackson, testified that the defendant took steps to protect the apartment from the police, including the installation of security locks, double doors, videocameras, and other monitoring equipment. On March 30, 1993, police executed a search warrant at that apartment. In addition to finding evidence of the security measures and an escape exit through the basement, police officers seized razor blades and plastic baggies.
Following that search, Wallace Jackson rented yet another apartment in Clinton. Vazquez testified that she and the defendant's fiancee, Patricia Peters, continued to travel to Chicago to obtain cocaine for redistribution in Clinton. Moses Jackson stated that he obtained crack cocaine from the defendant in April and May 1993 for resale in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Moses, Vazquez, and Carrie Brown testified that the defendant and Vazquez made deliveries of crack cocaine to Moses in Cedar Rapids.
After being caught by the police in Cedar Rapids with crack cocaine and several firearms, Moses Jackson agreed to cooperate with law enforcement. On June 23, 1993, Moses telephoned the defendant and asked him to bring more crack to Cedar Rapids. Wallace Jackson agreed, but cautioned that he would not bring much because he had only "three O's." Moses testified at trial that "three O's" referred to three ounces of crack cocaine. Seeking to corroborate his claims that he obtained crack cocaine from the defendant for resale in Cedar Rapids, the police recorded several additional phone calls placed by Moses Jackson to the defendant and to Patricia Peters.
On August 5, 1993, police officers executed a search warrant at Fontane's, a clothing and hair care products store in Clinton. Wallace Jackson paid the rent for the store and served as its manager. According to Katherine Vazquez, Jackson told her that his management of the business was designed to deflect suspicion about the source of his income. Fontane's was located in the vicinity of the apartments rented by Jackson for the distribution of crack cocaine. During the search of Fontane's, police found the defendant with two loaded firearms. On the roof of the establishment, officers found two men, John Jordan and Lorenzo Dodd, with two loaded firearms. At the conclusion of the search, police arrested the defendant. On August 11, 1993, police executed a search warrant at Jackson's apartment, finding a gun case and ammunition for three of the weapons seized at Fontane's.
Other evidence presented at trial suggested that Patricia Peters, Daman Julian, Rhonda Morris, John Jordan, and others continued to distribute crack cocaine on behalf of the defendant after his incarceration on weapons charges. Julian and Morris testified that they continued to obtain crack cocaine from Peters for resale. Morris testified that Peters told her that the defendant was directing his drug distribution enterprise from the Clinton County Jail. Telephone toll records received at trial indicated that there were regular communications between a party at Patricia Peters's residence and a party at the Clinton County Jail beginning on August 5, 1993.
Wallace Jackson, Katherine Vazquez, and Daman Julian were indicted by a grand jury on November 15, 1993. At his trial, Jackson testified in his own defense. He asserted that he never distributed crack cocaine to the alleged co-conspirators who testified against him. Jackson maintained that the police had lied about finding cash on his person during their search of his apartment on February 12, 1993, and that Katherine Vazquez had left the money and crack cocaine in his apartment. Jackson stated that his mention of "three O's" on the recorded phone conversation with Moses Jackson referred not to three ounces of crack cocaine but to three boxes of outfits that Moses Jackson was to sell on his behalf.
The jury convicted the defendant on the conspiracy count, and he was sentenced to a term of 400 months of imprisonment. On appeal, Jackson raises twelve claims, challenging both his conviction and his sentence. We address each in turn.
Jackson challenges the admission in evidence of eight statements made by co-conspirators. Jackson claims that the statements were not made in furtherance of the conspiracy, and therefore were not admissible under the co-conspirator exception to the hearsay rule, Fed.R.Evid. 801(d)(2)(E). The burden lies on the prosecution to establish by a preponderance of the evidence that (1) a conspiracy existed, (2) the defendant and the declarant were members of the conspiracy, and (3) the disputed statement was made during and in furtherance of the conspiracy. United States v. Morgan, 997 F.2d 433, 436-37 (8th Cir.1993).
Jackson challenges the statements under the third prong of the Morgan test. Given that the term "in furtherance of" is to be "interpreted broadly," United States v. Edwards, 994 F.2d 417, 422 (8th Cir.1993), and that "[s]tatements are admissible under 801(d)(2)(E) if the overall effect of the conversation is to facilitate the conspiracy," id., we find no abuse of discretion in the district court's determination that each of the statements was made during and in furtherance of the conspiracy. For example, Jackson points to the testimony of Daman Julian regarding a conversation with Patricia Peters in which she told him that she had just "picked up" a quarter or an eighth of a kilogram of cocaine. Trial Tr. at 373. Jackson objects on the ground that the prosecution failed to establish an adequate...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
U.S. v. Hall
...is generally a question of law subject to de novo review.' " United States v. Maza, 93 F.3d at 1398, quoting United States v. Jackson, 67 F.3d 1359, 1367 (8th Cir.1995), cert. denied, 517 U.S. 1192, 116 S.Ct. 1684, 134 L.Ed.2d 785 (1996); see also United States v. Delpit, 94 F.3d 1134, 1148......
-
U.S. v. Darden
...conspiracy. See Bourjaily v. United States, 483 U.S. 171, 175-76, 107 S.Ct. 2775, 2778-79, 97 L.Ed.2d 144 (1987); United States v. Jackson, 67 F.3d 1359, 1364 (8th Cir.1995). We have already concluded that the government proved beyond a reasonable doubt that a single conspiracy to violate t......
-
U.S. v. Wadena
...and did not constitute inadmissible hearsay. See United States v. Henneberry, 719 F.2d 941, 948 (8th Cir.1983); United States v. Jackson, 67 F.3d 1359, 1364 (8th Cir.1995). We review de novo the district court's decision that admission of exhibit 97 did not violate Rawley's Sixth Amendment ......
-
U.S. v. Delpit
...A trial court should give a multiple-conspiracy instruction when, and only when, the evidence supports it. United States v. Jackson, 67 F.3d 1359, 1367 (8th Cir.1995), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 116 S.Ct. 1684, 134 L.Ed.2d 785 The Malone/Saunders operation involved several players with di......
-
Obstruction of justice.
...unnecessary expenditure of substantial governmental or court resources." Id. [section] 2J1.2 cmt. l; see, e.g., United States v. Jackson, 67 F.3d 1359, 1369-70 (8th Cir. 1995) (applying three-level increase because government had to make significant efforts to determine how grand jury mater......
-
Obstruction of justice.
...the unnecessary expenditure of substantial governmental or court resources." Id. [section] 2J 1.2 cmt. 1; e.g., United States v. Jackson, 67 F.3d 1359, 1369-70 (8th Cir. 1995) (applying three level increase because government had to make significant efforts to determine how grand jury mater......
-
Obstruction of justice.
...of substantial governmental or court resources." U.S.S.G. MANUAL [section] 2J1.2 cmt. 1 (2005); e.g., United States v. Jackson, 67 F.3d 1359, 1369-70 (8th Cir. 1995) (applying three level increase because government had to make significant efforts to determine how grand jury materials had b......
-
Obstruction of justice.
...unnecessary expenditure of substantial governmental or court resources." Id. [section] 2.11.2 cmt. 1; see, e.g., United States v. Jackson, 67 F.3d 1359, 1369-70 (8th Cir. 1995) (applying three level increase because government had to make significant efforts to determine how grand jury mate......