Lucadamo v. United States

280 F. 653, 1922 U.S. App. LEXIS 1844
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Second Circuit
DecidedFebruary 14, 1922
DocketNo. 165
StatusPublished
Cited by29 cases

This text of 280 F. 653 (Lucadamo v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Lucadamo v. United States, 280 F. 653, 1922 U.S. App. LEXIS 1844 (2d Cir. 1922).

Opinion

MANTON, Circuit Judge.

By this indictment, the defendants below were charged with violation of section 37 of the United States-Criminal Code (Comp. St. § 10201). In substance, the charge is that they unlawfully, willfully, and knowingly conspired and agreed together and with other persons to commit an offense against the United States; that is, to violate the Act of December 17, 1914, as amended by sections 1006-1008 of the Revenue Act of 1918 (Comp. St. Ann. Supp. 1919, §§ 6287g, 62871, 6287r), in that they unlawfully sold and caused to be sold to one Milton Moffet 15 ounces of morphine, a derivative of opium. Four overt acts are charged in furtherance of the-conspiracy: First, that the defendant Damato introduced Moffet, Spellman, and Meisenzahl to John Eavelle, for the purpose of bringing about a sale to Moffet; second, that John Eavelle introduced Spell-man and Meisenzahl to Eucadamo and D’Ambrosia for the purpose-of bringing about the sale; third, that the defendants below, Damato and Eucadamo, delivered the morphine to Moffet; fourth, that Lu-cadamo accepted from Moffet $300 for the morphine obtained by Mof-fet from Eucadamo and Damato. While writs of error were sued out by each of the defendants below, upon this appeal John and Gaetano Lavelle are not represented by counsel. Moffet and Meisenzahl were-policemen, and Spellman was a drug addict. They were all engaged in detecting traffic of morphine and other drugs.

The defendants below urge here that the court below erred in denying their respective motions to dismiss the indictment or direct a verdict of acquittal, and this upon the ground that the evidence was-insufficient to submit to the jury on the question of conspiracy to vio[655]*655late the federal Criminal Code. It will be necessary, therefore, to examine briefly the testimony adduced on behalf of the government.

Moffet testified that he used Spellman as an investigator, and with his fellow policeman, Meisenzahl, went to Hudson avenue, near Johnson street, in the borough of Brooklyn, city of New York, and there met Damato through the introduction of Spellman. Damato invited Moffet to go with him to a poolroom at No. 57 Flatbush Avenue Extension, where they were introduced to John Eavelle. Damato explained to Eavelle that Moffet, Meisenzahl, and Spellman were “going to buy the stuff.” Eavelle stated that he had given “the stuff to another fellow to peddle in Williamsburg,” but that he thought he could get hold of the felloe, and told them to wait in the poolroom until he andi Damato returned. About an hour later, Lavelle came back alone and said everything was all right, and that they would hear from them in about 10 minutes. Eavelle left and came back, and said that Damato was on the telephone, and had asked for Dinny (meaning Spellman), and wanted Moffet to come right down. Moffet waited at the poolroom, but John Lavelle, Meisenzahl, and Spellman left the room. Then Gaetano Lavelle went over to Moffet and said, “We got some good stuff,” and “We handle good stuff.” He took out of his right-hand shirt pocket a sample of white powder, which he showed to Mof-fet, and took Moffet to his own room upstairs. Moffet returned to the poolroom and remained there until Meisenzahl, Spellman, John Ea-velle, and Damato returned. Moffet then said he didn’t see “why they couldn’t make the sale there,” as they had promised, and they replied that “the fellow didn’t want to bring it there.” Moffet agreed to go with them. John Eavelle told Gaetano Lavelle to “mind the poolroom.” John Eavelle and Damato left the poolroom with Moffet, Meisenzahl, and Spellman. They went to the corner of Concord and Hudson avenues, where they met Lucadamo and D’Ambrosia. Eucadamo said he could not bring them all up to his sister’s house, but that he would take only Spellman and Moffet. Later he agreed to let Moffet and Spell-man and Meisenzahl come up to the house, and he requested D’Ambrosia and Eavelle to wait on the corner. However, D’Ambrosia followed up to the door, where Eucadamo again told him to remain downstairs. Eucadamo went into a room and brought out a cigar box filled with white powder. A dispute about the price ensued. Moffet stated that he understood from Spellman the price to be $15 an ounce. Eucadamo said Spellman told him $20 an ounce. Moffet said the price would not make any difference, but that he had brought $300, and he wanted Lucadamo to save all ,over the 15 ounces, as he would be back for it on the next day. The powder was weighed, and 15 ounces were poured out in the box that Spellman had. The box was wrapped in a newspaper and Moffet handed Lucadamo $300, which the latter counted. In the meantime Spellman left with the powder at Moffet’s direction. After Eucadamo had counted the money, Moffet said he had given him $10 too much. Then Lucadamo took it from him to count it again, and, while counting it, three police officers came into the room and took the money out of Eucadamo’s hands, and, after comparing the marks on the money with the slip in the hand of one of the officers, Dama-[656]*656to and Lucadamo were arrested. While they were in the room, D’Ambrosia came in, and he was arrested. Later John Lavelle was arrested.

Spellman,'who said he was a reformed drug addict, corroborated this testimony in substance. He said that, when the three were introduced to Lucadamo and D’Ambrosia, D’Ambrosia said, “Who has got the money?” Meisenzahl testified in corroboration, and further stated that, when Spellman and he left the poolroom and left Moffet behind, Lavelle went to the telephone and returned, saying that Damato wanted to see Spellman. Lavelle took them to another poolroom on Navy street and Park avenue; that Lavelle went inside, later coming back,, and said that Damato would be right out, whereupon.'D’Ambrosia and Lucadamo came along, and Spellman and Meisenzahl were introduced to them. Lucadamo asked, Who had the money?- and Spellman said Moffet had it. Lucadamo said, “Let us return to the poolroom and get the officer with the money,” but later said he did not use the word “officer,” because he did not know Moffet was an officer.

From the above, it is apparent that all of the defendants named were engaged in a conspiracy to violate the sections of the Revenue Act referred to. Damato and Lucadamo were the first to appear on the scene and introduce the two policemen, together with Spellman, to John Lavelle, with the statement that they were the men who were the buyers. After this, they proceeded to aid in and facilitate the sale of the prohibited drug. It was Damato who returned, after leaving with the officers to go to the place where the drug was to be obtained, and reported' that it was necessary to take the policeman to the place where-they' met Lucadamo and D’Ambrosia. Lucadamo and D’Ambrosia went upstairs to Lucadamo’s sister’s rooms, and the bargain for the-sale of the morphine was there effected and the money was passed. D’Ambrosia, after having been formally introduced, became a member of the party of sellers of the morphine, and when at the corner of Con'cord‘street and Hudson avenue asked, “Who has got the money?” He-was insistent upon going upstairs with his co-conspirators, where the morphine was to be obtained, and remained downstairs only after Da-mato told him to do so, and then he and Lavelle waited on the corner. He waited around for a period of about an hour, during which time he was watched by other policemen, who were working with Moffet. He later walked' into the place where the sale of morphine had taken place, and where the arrests of Damato and Lucadamo were made. The-evidence is clear that the two Lavelles joined in the conspiracy and took an important part in it.

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Bluebook (online)
280 F. 653, 1922 U.S. App. LEXIS 1844, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lucadamo-v-united-states-ca2-1922.