Curry v. United States

• Decision Date: 14 January 1987
• Docket Number: No. 84-867.,Nos. 84-610.,No. 84-661.,s. 84-610.,84-661.,84-867.
• Citation: 520 A.2d 255
• Parties: Patricia CURRY, Appellant, v. UNITED STATES, Appellee. Wayne P. WASHINGTON, Appellant, v. UNITED STATES, Appellee. James C. JONES, Appellant, v. UNITED STATES, Appellee.
• Court: D.C. Court of Appeals

Page 255

520 A.2d 255

Patricia CURRY, Appellant, v.UNITED STATES, Appellee.

Wayne P. WASHINGTON, Appellant, v.UNITED STATES, Appellee.

James C. JONES, Appellant, v.UNITED STATES, Appellee.

Nos. 84-610.

No. 84-661.

No. 84-867.

District of Columbia Court of Appeals.

Argued May 6, 1986.

Decided January 14, 1987.

As Revised March 31, 1987.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Lawrence M. Baskir, Washington, D.C., appointed by the court, for appellant Curry.

Matthew C. Leefer, Boonsboro, Md., appointed by the court, for appellant Washington.

Steven M. Salky, with whom Roger E. Zuckerman and Michael R. Smith, Washington, D.C., were on brief, for appellant Jones.

Linda S. Chapman, Asst. U.S. Atty., with whom Joseph E. diGenova, U.S. Atty., Michael W. Farrell, and G. William Currier, Asst. U.S. Attys., Washington, D.C., were on brief, for appellee.

Before MACK and NEWMAN, Associate Judges, and PAIR,^* Senior Judge.

MACK, Associate Judge:

Three police officers, armed with a search warrant, seized heroin, cocaine and a loaded pistol from an apartment in Northeast Washington.AppellantsPatricia Curry, James Jones and Wayne Washington were each charged with possession of heroin with intent to distribute,¹ possession of cocaine with intent to distribute,² possession of an unregistered firearm,³ and unlawful possession of ammunition.⁴The jury found Jones and Washington guilty as charged.They were sentenced to identical terms of imprisonment, totalling from six years and eight months to twenty years, and Jones was fined an additional $75,000 for his drug convictions.The jury acquitted Curry of the drug charges, but returned a guilty verdict on the firearm and ammunition charges.She was sentenced to 180 days imprisonment, all but 30 days to be suspended, with two years of probation to follow her release.

A number of contentions are raised on appeal.We are persuaded by one—that the evidence was insufficient to convict on the firearm and ammunition charges.On those counts, the convictions of all three defendants must be reversed.Curry, having been acquitted by the jury on the drug charges, therefore has no convictions remaining.As for Jones and Washington, the several challenges raised against their drug convictions, while some have merit, do not constitute reversible error.

We reverse all convictions for unlawful possession of the firearm and ammunition; we affirm the convictions of Jones and Washington for possession of heroin and cocaine with intent to distribute.

IThe Government's Evidence

At about 11:45 p.m. on October 16, 1981, three officers of the Metropolitan Police Department executed a search warrant at Apartment Four of a building in Northeast Washington.On their arrival, the officers noticed a red ribbon on the door of the apartment.At trial, a narcotics expert testified that a distinctive item of that nature is commonly used to signal that a largescale drug distribution operation is open for business.The officers knocked, announced initially that they were there to investigate a traffic complaint, and entered when Washington opened the door.The officers did not need to use the battering ram they had brought with them.

Jones and Washington were inside the apartment with two women and another man.Curry was not present.The men were searched and the women patted down.All five were then kept in the living room while the police officers conducted their search of the premises.Large quantities of heroin and cocaine were discovered.

Upon their entry, the officers observed Washington seated on a couch in the living room and ordered him to show his hands.Washington refused.Turning his back to the officers, Washington made furtive hand movements.From the couch on which he sat the officers immediately retrieved 3 packets of heroin and a straw.On the coffee table in the same room was a wallet containing numerous credit cards and a money order in the name of Jones.In that wallet were 2 packets of heroin.Heroin was found in two locations in the bedroom.On top of the dresser was 1 foil packet of the drug.In a drawer of the same dresser, the officers found 40 packets of heroin.These packets were contained in 6 "strips," a form of packaging which the government's narcotics expert testified made the heroin easily separable into many smaller "decks" of 20 or "bundles" of 5 suitable for street distribution by a retailer known as a "runner."In a trash receptacle by the rear door, the officers found an envelope containing 9 packets of heroin and $75 in cash.

Cocaine was also seized in abundance.A bag of rice in the bedroom dresser drawer (where the 40 packets of heroin were found) contained 8 packets of cocaine.In the refrigerator was another bag of rice, this one containing 31 packets of cocaine.Detective Dwight Rawls of the Heroin Task Force, the government's narcotics expert, testified that cocaine can be mixed with rice to keep it dry and that its purity can be preserved by refrigeration.

In all, 10,011 milligrams of heroin and 10,496 milligrams of cocaine were found in the apartment.

Two large bags of quinine and manitol were retrieved from the bedroom closet.Detective Rawls told the court that quinine and manitol are used to dilute heroin and cocaine to their normal street strength.Manitol also relieves the constipation suffered by heroin users.The Drug Enforcement Agency's laboratory analysis of the heroin and cocaine seized from the apartment showed that the drugs had been mixed with quinine or manitol, or both.

A loaded nine-millimeter handgun was found amongst women's clothing in a nightstand in the bedroom.This pistol did not carry the fingerprints of any of the appellants.None of the three was registered to carry a pistol on the date of their arrest.

In addition to the heroin, cocaine, handgun and ammunition, the officers seized several other items.In the wallet on the living room coffee table, together with two packets of heroin and credit cards in the name of Jones, was a money order receipt dated about a month before the raid took place.The money order was written by Jones in payment of $122 rent for the apartment where the search took place.Other personal belongings identifying Jones as their owner were found on the floor.In the dining area was an envelope containing various papers, including several items of identification in the name of Washington.On top of the dresser in the bedroom, the search team found a change of address card for Curry, in her handwriting, directing the postal service to forward her mail to Apartment Four.Also on top of the dresser was a pouch containing several items of identification in Curry's name, an address book with her name on the front page, and an envelope mailed to her at another address.

A radio scanner, in plain view, was receiving police broadcasts when the search team entered the apartment.Also in plain view was a "Seal-a-Meal" device which, according to the government's narcotics expert, could be used to seal the "decks" of narcotics for street sales.This appliance

carried the thumbprint of Jones.A total of $1,171 in cash was seized, including $266 from the third man who was present during the search and who unsuccessfully attempted to escape through the back door when the police arrived.

During the raid, Washington identified as his own a set of keys that fit Apartment Four.Another set of apartment keys was found in a jacket in the living room; this jacket fitted Jones and, although he never claimed it as his own, Jones was given it to wear to the police station.

Various papers, notebooks, memo pads and calendar books were recovered from a satchel in the dinette area, and a calendar book was taken from the top of the bedroom dresser where it lay amongst various items belonging to Curry.The government's handwriting expert, James Miller, studied authentic handwriting samples and, on that basis, attributed the handwriting on the seized documents to the three appellants.Miller also concluded that the samples submitted by Washington and Curry showed a "drastic disguise" when compared to their normal handwriting.Miller did not describe Jones' handwriting sample as disguised, but did remark that it was slightly "deteriorated."

The seized documents were also shown to Detective Rawls, the narcotics expert.According to Detective Rawls, the papers appeared to be the records of a large-scale drug distribution operation.He said that the base of this type of operation is commonly known as a "house."The person in charge of the operation will normally obtain the premises, pay the rent and establish a security system, so that the "house" is not robbed or raided by the police.A typical method by which large-scale drug dealers avoid detection is an occasional change in the hours of business and the location of the "house."That a "house" is open for business is usually signalled by some symbol such as a light or a color code.

Heroin sold on the streets is first diluted, or cut, then weighed or measured, and then packaged.The package is heat-sealed or rolled and either sold individually or released in fives, tens, twenties or fifties for redistribution.Detective Rawls testified that the weighing, measuring, cutting and packaging of the drugs do not necessarily take place in the same premises as the selling for resale on the streets.However, the presence of a "Seal-a-Meal" device could indicate that some packaging took place in Apartment Four.Drug dealers often keep records of their transactions so as to keep control over their stock and their assets.Such records also prevent internal cheating and reveal which customers are reliable.Telephone logs, he said, can be used to take orders.

Detective Rawls testified that the documents seized from Apartment Four were consistent with the records of the operation he described.A sheet of paper in appellant Jones' handwriting appeared to be a narcotics...