U.S. v. Apfel, 90-2637

• Court: United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (8th Circuit)
• Writing for the Court: Before LAY, Chief Judge, HEANEY; HEANEY
• Citation: 945 F.2d 236
• Parties: UNITED STATES of America, Appellee, v. Monte Allen APFEL, Appellant.
• Docket Number: No. 90-2637,90-2637
• Decision Date: 30 August 1991

Page 236

945 F.2d 236 UNITED STATES of America, Appellee,
v.
Monte Allen APFEL, Appellant. No. 90-2637. United States Court of Appeals,
Eighth Circuit. Submitted May 17, 1991.
Decided Aug. 30, 1991.

John Ackerman, Waterloo, Iowa, for appellant.

Janet Peterson, Asst. U.S. Atty., argued (Daniel Tvedt, Asst. U.S. Atty, on the brief), Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for appellee.

Page 237

Before LAY, Chief Judge, HEANEY, Senior Circuit Judge, and DOTY, ^* District Judge.

HEANEY, Senior Circuit Judge.

Monte Allen Apfel pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute and conspiring to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. He appeals his 175-month guidelines sentence. Apfel claims that the district court erred by finding that (1) he was responsible for distributing or possessing with intent to distribute one pound of methamphetamine, and (2) he was an organizer or leader of a criminal activity that involved five or more participants. We affirm the district court, ¹ which conducted an extensive evidentiary hearing and made careful findings of fact well supported by the record.

Background

Apfel pleaded guilty to an information charging him with a single count of conspiring to distribute and conspiring to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine from 1984 to February 1989. At the plea hearing, the government outlined the proof it would have presented had there been a trial on the conspiracy charge. ² Apfel disputed some of the government's allegations, but admitted that from 1984 to February 1989, he bought methamphetamine from two suppliers and made at least ten sales to friends, sometimes more than once to the same person. According to Apfel, his two suppliers knew that he was selling the drugs to others. Apfel also admitted that he used methamphetamine and stated that he sold the drug to pay for his habit.

The district court held an extensive evidentiary hearing to determine, among other things, the amount of drugs attributable to Apfel. The hearing spanned two days and involved ten witnesses. Some of the witnesses who said they had bought drugs from Apfel described the guns and the quantities of drugs in Apfel's possession. Other witnesses, such as other dealers, testified about Apfel's role in the drug conspiracy. After considering this testimony, the district court found that Apfel was responsible for one pound of methamphetamine, possessed a gun during the commission of the offense, and was a manager or supervisor of the criminal activity. The court sentenced Apfel to 175 months in prison. ³

Amount of Drugs Attributable to Apfel

Apfel raises two issues on appeal. First, he claims that the district court erred by calculating his offense level based on the conclusion that Apfel bought a pound of methamphetamine from bigger drug

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dealers. Apfel does not contest here that the district court could have found from the evidence that he bought a total of one pound of methamphetamine. Apfel contends, however, that the purchases were for his own use rather than for resale.

The district court did not clearly err in finding that Apfel bought one pound of methamphetamine from his suppliers for resale. Witnesses testified that Apfel bought methamphetamine in at least one-ounce quantities, that those quantities were too big for personal use, that Apfel packaged the drugs in smaller quantities for resale, and that Apfel frequently sold the drugs to others. The district court was not required to believe Apfel's claim that he bought drugs mostly for personal use. Indeed, the district court expressly discredited Apfel's testimony, having found Apfel's answers evasive and vague.

Apfel also claims that the district court's finding as to drug quantities should be set aside because he was denied the right to confront the witnesses testifying against him. See United States v. Fortier, 911 F.2d 100, 103-04 (8th Cir.1990) (confrontation clause violated where district court based drug quantities on...