U.S. v. Broadwell, 87-8567
| Decision Date | 19 April 1989 |
| Docket Number | No. 87-8567,87-8567 |
| Citation | 870 F.2d 594 |
| Parties | UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Louis BROADWELL, a/k/a Drifter, Ulice Melton, a/k/a Cloud Nine, Gene, and Michael Anthony Blanton, Defendants-Appellants. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Eleventh Circuit |
Bruce Maloy, Maloy, Sadow & Jenkins, Atlanta, Ga. (Court-appointed), for Louis Broadwell.
W. Benjamin Ballenger, Summerville, Ga., for Ulice Melton.
John W. Stokes, Lawrenceville, Ga., for Michael Anthony Blanton.
H. Allen Moye, Asst. U.S. Atty., Atlanta, Ga., for plaintiff-appellee.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.
Before HATCHETT and CLARK, Circuit Judges, and HOEVELER *, District Judge.
This action arises from an alliance of truckers and "bathtub chemists" who collectively engaged in various activities involving the manufacture, sale and distribution of crystal methamphetamine ("crystal"). 1 Appellants Louis Broadwell, Michael Blanton, and Ulice Melton appeal from their convictions on various drug, kidnapping and firearms charges. 2
The facts in this action revolve around a coterie of drug traffickers including some would-be chemists and their portable laboratory. In 1985, a small group of individuals met and entered an agreement to manufacture crystal in San Bernardino County, California. This group consisted of William Brittain, Lynda Placko, and Larry Query. Melton was also a part of this group. He provided some of the start-up investment capital and actively managed the group's search for a manufacturing location and source of supplies outside of California.
The group continued their crystal manufacturing and distribution operations throughout the fall and winter of 1985-1986. During this time, Melton introduced Broadwell into the conspiracy. Broadwell operated a small trucking business out of Charleston, South Carolina which often made cross-country runs. Because of Broadwell's trucking background, he was familiar with crystal and its use by truckers to increase alertness and ward off drowsiness. As his first delivery for the group, Broadwell received six ounces of crystal in Palm Springs, California during Christmas and returned to South Carolina where it was later sold.
During February and March 1986, Melton told Brittain and Placko that he had found a suitable location on the East Coast to manufacture crystal. Melton then made arrangements to move the laboratory equipment to Birmingham, Alabama where Placko obtained it and delivered it to Broadwell's home in Summerville, South Carolina. Placko, Brittain and Melton met and began manufacturing crystal. The finished product was divided among themselves for distribution. Some was also distributed to Michael Wilkin, who would become the group's major wholesaler.
In early April, 1986, Melton and Placko met at Melton's home in Georgia, set up the crystallization process there, and produced some crystal from methamphetamine oil. On April 5, Melton received some crystal and delivered a portion of it to Wilkin. Melton also paid $5000 to Placko.
On April 10, Melton delivered the remaining methamphetamine oil and money to Brittain. He then returned to Broadwell's South Carolina home to set up the laboratory there. During April and May, Melton also manufactured crystal in Anderson, South Carolina and Greenville, South Carolina. The crystal was delivered to Wilkin for distribution and sale.
Wilkin and Melton met again, this time on an interstate highway in Georgia in early June, 1986, where Melton delivered more crystal to Wilkin. Wilkin soon met with James Phillips, who having purchased crystal from Melton through an intermediary, wanted to become a crystal distributor. Phillips was to become a primary crystal retailer.
Later that summer, Brittain, Placko, Query, and Broadwell met to reassign their duties when Melton decided to stop dealing with the group. Broadwell was to undertake Melton's manufacturing role but not participate in crystal distribution. Query was in charge of purchasing supplies. The laboratory was also moved again, this time to another location in either North or South Carolina where approximately two pounds of crystal were produced. This batch was distributed to Query, Broadwell, and Wilkin (who received about one pound). Wilkin subdivided his pound and delivered part to Phillips in Georgia. Query distributed additional quantities of crystal to Wilkin who forwarded it on to Phillips 3 on two occasions and once to John Bauer.
In early October, 1986, Brittain and Placko agreed with George Livingston to provide Livingston with crystal for distribution by yet another distributor in Georgia, Rodney Fairbanks. Broadwell manufactured another batch of crystal from which a sample was sent to Livingston for Fairbanks's approval. During this time, Brittain and Placko traveled from California to South Carolina by way of Georgia. They picked up the laboratory and necessary chemicals and went to Cross, South Carolina where they manufactured about two pounds of crystal. These two pounds were delivered to Fairbanks in Atlanta, Georgia.
Through misadventure, Fairbanks sold one pound of crystal to an Atlanta undercover officer. Following his arrest, Fairbanks furnished information leading to the arrest of Brittain, Placko and Livingston who had arrived in Atlanta and checked into a hotel shortly before the bust. The arresting officers found the remaining crystal from the last batch and a pound of the chemical inputs in the hotel room. Brittain also had a handgun in his possession that was registered to Broadwell.
The arrests sent shock waves through the conspirators who immediately launched a cooperative effort to raise money to free Brittain and Placko. Their first step was to pick up the crystal laboratory in South Carolina. Broadwell called ahead to Livingston's home to arrange for Query and James Bowers to obtain and then deliver the equipment to Broadwell's home on November 2. Phillips and Wilkin, at Broadwell's direction, drove from Georgia to Broadwell's home, picked up the lab, and moved it to Birmingham, Alabama.
Broadwell, who was in California, then decided that the entire crystal operation should be moved to Illinois where Bauer lived. This move required Phillips to drive Brittain's automobile loaded with chemicals from California to Houston, Texas where Broadwell, Belinda Swing, 4 and Phillips met him. Phillips returned to Atlanta but the remaining three drove to Bauer's home in Greenfield, Illinois. They set up the laboratory and Broadwell began manufacturing crystal but soon ran into production difficulties. Undaunted, a three-way call between Broadwell, Placko and Brittain (who was in the Fulton County jail) provided the needed advise and assistance to produce the batch.
The laboratory was moved to various Illinois locations, then to Wilkin's Indianapolis home, and finally south to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Wilkin and Bauer then drove to Pigeon Forge and checked into a motel. Phillips and Michael Blanton also joined them in Pigeon Forge. When there was no response to their knocks on the motel room door, they asked the motel personnel to open it. Once inside, the motel personnel discovered a loaded semiautomatic pistol and some marijuana, but neither Wilkin nor Bauer were present. Suspicions aroused, the motel personnel called the police who arrested Bauer and Bowers upon their return. Wilkin, however, became wary and did not return to the motel. Phillips and Michael Blanton also fled the area. 5
In December, Broadwell and Phillips drove from Georgia to Alabama to meet Query who had brought chemicals for the laboratory from California. These chemicals were later transported to the laboratory in Tennessee.
Broadwell and Phillips returned to Atlanta in possession of about 280 grams of crystal. On December 18, Broadwell and Wilkin drove to Knoxville, Tennessee with the purpose of selling the crystal. A day later Wilkin absconded with the crystal and went into hiding. With his wife's help he flew to Atlanta where he met Jimmy Wright. The two then met David Dunlap to whom Wilkin delivered the 280 grams of crystal.
Needless to say, Broadwell and Phillips began looking for Wilkin. During the early morning hours of December 31, Phillips and David Florence ("Big D") located Wilkin at Wright's home in Clayton County, Georgia. Big D severely beat Wilkin and when Broadwell and Michael Blanton arrived, Broadwell joined in the beating. Broadwell and others were armed at this time and made a futile search of Wright's apartment for the crystal.
After Wilkin disclosed that Dunlap had the crystal, Broadwell, Phillips and Big D took Wilkin to Dunlap's home in Alabama where they recovered the crystal. They returned immediately to Phillips' home in Georgia where they continued to forcibly restrain Wilkin. According to Wilkin, they wanted to prevent Wilkin from cooperating with the authorities and possibly testifying in the trial in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Wilkin stated that Michael Blanton, along with a number of other individuals were at Phillips' home when Wilkin arrived. 6 Wilkin also testified that Broadwell and Phillips told him that if he tried to escape, they would kill him or any member in his family. Record, Vol. 9 at 775-76.
Wilkin was held from December 31 to January 23 while being moved to various locations. Russell Barrett 7 agreed to "keep an eye" on Wilkin in return for two ounces of crystal Phillips provided. Barrett held Wilkin in an Atlanta apartment until January 2 when he was moved to Barrett's house for a few hours. He was then moved to a lake house near Lake Lanier where Barrett held him for three or four days. Wilkin was then moved back to Barrett's house in Atlanta for a ten day period. During this time Phillips told Barrett not to worry...
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