United States v. Gaddy

• Decision Date: 14 July 2008
• Docket Number: No. 07-2625.,07-2625.
• Citation: 532 F.3d 783
• Parties: UNITED STATES of America, Appellee, v. Mark Anthony GADDY, also known as Mark Gaddy, Appellant.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Eighth Circuit

532 F.3d 783

UNITED STATES of America, Appellee, v. Mark Anthony GADDY, also known as Mark Gaddy, Appellant.

No. 07-2625.

United States Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit.

Submitted: March 11, 2008.

Filed: July 14, 2008.

Nicholas A. Klinefeldt, argued, Des Moines, IA, for appellant.

Debra L. Scorpiniti, argued, Des Moines, IA, for Appellee.

Before RILEY, GRUENDER and SHEPHERD, Circuit Judges.

GRUENDER, Circuit Judge.

Mark Anthony Gaddy was convicted after a jury trial of one count of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(B) and 846, one count of possession with intent to distribute five or more grams of cocaine base, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(B), and four counts of use of a communication facility in a drug felony offense, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 843(b). He appeals the district court's¹ decision to admit his confession and three prior convictions into evidence, as well as his sentence. We affirm.

I. BACKGROUND

During the course of a narcotics investigation in February 2005, Iowa law enforcement officers, working with agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration, determined that Gaddy was purchasing cocaine and cocaine base from a drug dealer. They intercepted telephone calls in which Gaddy discussed drug transactions. On August 18, 2005, between 5:30 and 6:00 a.m., approximately twelve officers from the Des Moines Metro Special Tactics and Response ("STAR") team entered Gaddy's home to execute search and arrest warrants. STAR officers used bright lights, swift entry and loud directions to confuse and disorient residents in order to ensure safe entry. Officers found Gaddy and two other individuals in the home and restrained them with flexible handcuffs.

After Gaddy's home was secured, the STAR team departed around 6:20 a.m. Five officers, including Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement Special Agent Scott Peasley and Deputy United States Marshall Mike Powell, conducted the search and questioned the occupants. Deputy Powell testified that all three occupants were awake and calm, although it appeared that Gaddy had been recently awakened.

Agent Peasley administered Miranda² warnings to Gaddy at 6:22 a.m. Agent Peasley wrote Gaddy's answers on the Miranda waiver form because Gaddy's hands were restrained behind his back. The waiver reflected that Gaddy understood and waived his Miranda rights and was willing to make a statement. Agent Peasley then administered warnings to the other occupants, finishing at 6:34 a.m.

At approximately 7:00 a.m., Agent Peasley moved Gaddy to a bedroom and seated him on the floor, while Agent Peasley sat on a weight-lifting bench above him. Agent Peasley asked if Gaddy wanted to make a statement, and Gaddy said he did. Agent Peasley removed the flexible handcuffs and restrained Gaddy's hands in front of him using standard handcuffs. Deputy Powell occasionally entered the room but did not ask questions. During the interview, Gaddy admitted to his involvement in the distribution of cocaine. He stated that he would purchase $50 rocks of crack cocaine two or three times a month and occasionally resell the $50 rocks to support his habit. The interview lasted approximately fifteen minutes, and Agent Peasley testified that Gaddy appeared awake and coherent and did not appear to be under the influence of drugs.

A grand jury returned an eight-count indictment, charging Gaddy with one count of conspiracy to distribute fifty or more grams of cocaine base, cocaine, and marijuana; one count of possession with intent to distribute five or more grams of cocaine base; and six counts of use of a communication facility in a drug felony offense.

Prior to trial, Gaddy moved to suppress his confession, arguing that it was not the product of a voluntary waiver of his Miranda rights. Gaddy testified that he had not slept the night before the arrest. He claimed that by 8:30 a.m. the previous day he had taken two Darvocets, a type of pain reliever, and 1600 milligrams of Skelaxin, a muscle relaxer. He worked on a car motor until 2:30 a.m. Over the next hour, Gaddy took two or three shots of gin, two Darvocets and two Skelaxins. He also smoked a Mac blunt, a mix of marijuana and cocaine. He argued that the alcohol, drugs and sleeplessness precluded a finding that he waived his rights voluntarily. Gaddy also argued that the STAR team's entrance disoriented him, that the time between the entrance and the confession was short, and that Peasley's position on a weight-lifting bench was intimidating, all of which created a coercive atmosphere. The district court denied Gaddy's motion to suppress.

During the jury trial, the Government sought to introduce three of Gaddy's prior convictions. Gaddy was convicted in 1995 for possession with intent to deliver five grams or less of cocaine base, in 1996 for possession with intent to deliver cocaine, and in 2002 for possession with intent to deliver marijuana. The Government argued that the convictions were admissible because Gaddy made a general denial and because the convictions would be relevant to Gaddy's knowledge and intent. Gaddy objected on the basis that the convictions were barred under Federal Rule of Evidence 404(b) because they were too old and their unfair prejudice substantially outweighed their probative value. The district court overruled Gaddy's objection and allowed the convictions into evidence.

The jury returned a guilty verdict against Gaddy on all counts except two of the communication counts. In a special interrogatory, the jury also found that Gaddy was responsible for five grams or more of cocaine base, but not fifty grams or more.

At Gaddy's sentencing on June 29, 2007, the district court found by a preponderance of the evidence that Gaddy engaged in a conspiracy to distribute fifty or more grams of cocaine base and determined that Gaddy had a base offense level of 32 and a criminal history category of VI under the United States Sentencing Guidelines. The district court determined that it had no authority to address the advisory sentencing guidelines' crack/powder cocaine disparity that Gaddy raised. The district court went on to find that Gaddy was a career offender, which meant that regardless of its drug quantity finding, Gaddy had a total offense level of 37 under the sentencing guidelines. His advisory sentencing guidelines range was 360 months' to life imprisonment.

The district court rejected Gaddy's request to depart on account of overstated criminal history. It then examined the factors in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a) to determine whether to vary. It discussed the nature and circumstances of Gaddy's offense, Gaddy's history and characteristics, the seriousness of his offense, adequate deterrence to criminal conduct, and protection of the public. The district court acknowledged that the sentencing guidelines range was advisory, but it noted:

There is a presumption in this circuit that that guideline range is reasonable unless the court can articulate specific reasons why it would not be.... The United States Supreme Court has now told us [in Rita v. United States, 552 U.S. ___, 127 S.Ct. 2456, 168 L.Ed.2d 203 (Jun. 21, 2007)] that there's nothing wrong with that presumption, and so there's no reason to hesitate to indicate that that is the law of this circuit. Unless I can come up with very specific reasons why the guidelines are not appropriate in your case, then it's assumed that that would be a reasonable thing to do to follow those guidelines.

Sentencing Tr. at 16. The district court went on to find that "the state of the law is not supportive of a variance on those [grounds, including overstated criminal history,] for legal reasons, but also primarily based upon the criminal history. It's difficult to come up with rational reasons why there should be a variance from the guideline sentence under the circumstances of this case...." Id. at 17. The district court held that Gaddy's criminal history, the seriousness of the offense, and the need to avoid unwarranted sentencing disparity precluded a variance. It concluded that a sentence within the sentencing guidelines range "adequately addresse[d] the circumstances of this defendant" and sentenced Gaddy to 360 months' imprisonment each on the conspiracy and the possession counts and to 96 months' imprisonment on each of the four communication counts, with all sentences to run concurrently.

Gaddy appeals. First, he argues the district court improperly failed to suppress his confession. Second, he claims that the district court erred in admitting evidence of his prior convictions. Finally, he argues that the district court incorrectly calculated his advisory sentencing guidelines range and applied an improper presumption of reasonableness to it.

II. DISCUSSION

A. Gaddy's Confession

Gaddy first argues that the district court should have suppressed his confession. He notes that he had not slept the night before and that he consumed alcohol and drugs several hours before he waived his rights. He contends that the STAR team's dynamic entrance was designed to confuse him and that the resulting confusion meant he could not consent voluntarily. Finally, Gaddy contends that Agent Peasley's position, sitting on a weight-lifting bench above Gaddy, was coercive. These factors, Gaddy argues, support the conclusion that he did not voluntarily waive his Miranda rights.

A waiver of the Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination is valid if the waiver is made voluntarily, knowingly and intelligently. Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 444, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966). "We accept the district court's factual findings unless they are clearly erroneous. We review the ultimate determination that the accused knowingly and voluntarily waived these rights de novo." United States v. Makes Room, 49 F.3d 410, 414 (8th Cir.1995). "A waiver is voluntary if it was the product of a free and deliberate...