United States v. Carlos Andres Gonzalez

279 F. App'x 806
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
DecidedMay 28, 2008
Docket07-13648
StatusUnpublished

This text of 279 F. App'x 806 (United States v. Carlos Andres Gonzalez) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Carlos Andres Gonzalez, 279 F. App'x 806 (11th Cir. 2008).

Opinion

PER CURIAM:

Carlos Gonzalez appeals his convictions for conspiracy to distribute more than 1000 marijuana plants, 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), 841(b)(l)(A)(viii), 846, and possession with intent to distribute 100 or more marijuana plants, 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1), (b)(l)(B)(vii), and Fidel Gonzalez appeals his conviction and sentence for conspiracy to distribute more than 1000 marijuana plants, 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), 841(b)(l)(A)(viii), 846. Fidel and Carlos each challenge evidentiary rulings. Fidel also argues that there was a material variance between his indictment and the evidence at trial, insufficient evidence to support his conviction, and a sentencing error. We affirm.

I. BACKGROUND

Fidel and Carlos were involved in the cultivation, distribution, and sale of marijuana. Carlos lived in Miami with Gilberto Perez. Carlos trained Perez about the cultivation of marijuana plants and introduced Perez to Fidel. Perez harvested three crops, each containing 50 to 60 marijuana plants. Fidel and Carlos paid Perez based on the amount that Perez produced and retained “the balance” of the profits. Fidel and Carlos transported the marijuana to New York in 30-pound increments.

Perez later received money from Carlos and Fidel to purchase two homes in Homestead. Fidel helped convert the homes into greenhouses, and Fidel and Carlos delivered marijuana plants to the two locations. Perez and Carlos’s father, Jose Hernandez, cultivated the plants and harvested three crops totaling 120 plants. Hernandez also assisted other growers in harvesting ten additional crops, three of which involved a total of 152 plants.

Perez introduced Carlos to Osvaldo Alonso, who later performed electrical work and installed air conditioning in the marijuana greenhouses. Alonso purchased a house in Homestead that Fidel helped convert into a greenhouse in which Alonso harvested two crops totaling 132 marijuana plants. Fidel, who observed the first harvest and took possession of the crop, divided the profit with Alonso. With profits from the first house, Alonso purchased a second home, where he harvested two additional crops totaling 132 marijuana plants. Fidel and Carlos took possession of the marijuana, and Carlos paid Alonso for the crops.

*808 In the meantime, Carlos recruited Ignacio Carbajal in Miami and introduced him to Fidel. Carbajal purchased a home that Fidel and Carlos helped him to convert into a marijuana greenhouse. Carbajal harvested two crops totaling 108 plants and divided the profits with Carlos. Fidel transported Carbajal to assist others periodically to harvest their marijuana crops.

Carbajal introduced Carlos to his cousin, Ernesto Castillo, who cultivated the marijuana in Carbajal’s Miami home and helped harvest marijuana at two other Miami greenhouses. At one harvest, Castillo saw Fidel and Carlos overseeing the operation. When Castillo inquired when he would paid for the harvests, Carbajal and his father told Castillo that Fidel controlled the money in the marijuana operation.

After several crops were stolen from the Miami homes, Carlos and Fidel moved their operations to Cape Coral, where they continued to provide money for individuals in the marijuana network to purchase and convert homes into marijuana greenhouses. The Gonzalezes assisted Perez to purchase a home that Perez used to harvest 14 marijuana plants. Carlos provided Carbajal with money to purchase one Cape Coral home, in which he harvested three crops totaling 76 plants. Carlos then assisted Carbajal to purchase a second home, where Carbajal harvested 21 plants. Carlos helped Carbajal’s father purchase a home in which Fidel helped to harvest 15 to 17 plants. Carlos also opened his home to Jose Pena Pupo, whom Carlos paid to harvest between 115 and 120 plants.

Carlos recruited Armando Garcia in Cape Coral and used Alonso to convert Garcia’s house into a marijuana greenhouse. Garcia harvested between 40 and 50 marijuana plants, after which Carlos collected the substance and paid Garcia 24,000 dollars. Garcia thereafter assisted others to harvest four or five crops.

Carlos also recruited his uncle, Carlos Hernandez, to participate in two harvests totaling 124 plants. Fidel visited Hernandez on one occasion to observe the marijuana. Perez and Carbajal also visited Hernandez to advise him about growing marijuana.

After Ernesto Castillo was arrested in Carbajal’s home, Fidel and Carlos provided Castillo with money to hire an attorney. Castillo eventually agreed to assist law enforcement to discover marijuana greenhouses in Miami. Castillo later expressed an interest in assisting authorities in Cape Coral. Castillo identified four homes that he had helped convert into greenhouses. Authorities placed a global positioning tracker on Carbajal’s vehicle and tracked the vehicle to several other homes in Cape Coral.

Based on information accumulated during the investigation, Cape Coral officers and Drug Enforcement Administration agents executed warrants on seven homes visited by Carbajal and seized 691 marijuana plants. Although neither Fidel nor Carlos was arrested, their names were discovered in the contact lists of seized cellular telephones, and several individuals, including Armando Garcia, were taken into custody. When the authorities searched Garcia’s house, they discovered a photograph of Carlos standing in what appeared to be a room of marijuana plants. Authorities later arrested Gilberto Perez and Osvaldo Alonso, and they agreed to cooperate in the investigation.

Fidel and Carlos were indicted for conspiracy to distribute more than 1000 marijuana plants, 21 U.S.C. § § 841(a)(1), 841(b)(l)(A)(viii), 846, and possession with intent to distribute 100 or more marijuana plants, 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1), (b)(l)(B)(vii). Before trial, Carlos filed a motion in limine to exclude the photograph seized from Garcia’s house. The district court with *809 held a ruling until after the government laid a foundation for the evidence.

At trial, Gilberto Perez, Jose Hernandez, Armando Garcia, Osvaldo Alonso, Carlos Hernandez, Ignacio Carbajal, Jose Pupo, and Ernesto Castillo testified about their participation in the cultivation and harvesting of marijuana and their interaction with Fidel and Carlos. Jose Hernandez testified that Fidel “controlled the money” in the marijuana operation. Garcia testified that the photograph seized from his home depicted Carlos standing among marijuana “plants that look like the ones that I had in my house.”

On cross-examination, Castillo denied that he had told police that Carbajal led the marijuana operation in Cape Coral. The government continued this line of inquiry on redirect examination and asked Castillo to name the leader of the marijuana organization, to which Castillo answered that he did not know. The government then asked Castillo who he “believed” was the leader of the organization.

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Bluebook (online)
279 F. App'x 806, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-carlos-andres-gonzalez-ca11-2008.