United States v. Edwards

889 F. Supp. 2d 47, 89 Fed. R. Serv. 399, 2012 WL 3834823, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 125297
District Court, District of Columbia·Decided September 5, 2012·No. Criminal Nos. 11-129-1 (CKK), 11-129-2 (CKK), 11-129-11 (CKK)·Published·Cited by 4 cases

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

COLLEEN KOLLAR-KOTELLY, District Judge.

The Superseding Indictment alleges that Defendants Gezo Goeong Edwards, William Martin Bowman, Henry Brandon Williams, and eleven co-Defendants (who are not proceeding to trial) engaged in a conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine between January 2009 and April 26, 2011. Presently before the Court is the Government’s [365] Motion in Li-mine Seeking Admission of Intrinsic Evi[48] dence of the Crime Charged.1 The Government seeks to admit evidence that in or about March or April of 2010, Defendant Edwards, with Defendant Bowman present, purportedly threatened a co-conspirator with a gun under the belief that the co-conspirator had stolen a large sum of money and several kilograms of cocaine from a stash house utilized by the conspirators. The Government contends the alleged incident constitutes “intrinsic” evidence of the charged conspiracy. In the alternative, the Government argues the alleged incident is admissible as “other-crimes” evidence pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence 404(b). For the reasons stated below, the Court finds the event in question constitutes “intrinsic” evidence of the conspiracy.2 Accordingly, the Government’s [365] Motion in Limine Seeking Admission of Intrinsic Evidence of the Crime Charged is GRANTED.

I. BACKGROUND

Defendants Edwards, Bowman, and Williams are charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846, 841(a)(1) and (b)(l)(A)(ii). Defendants Edwards also faces two counts of using, carrying, and possessing a firearm during a drug trafficking offense in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 924(c). Defendant Bowman further faces three counts of using, carrying, and possessing a firearm during a drug trafficking offense, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 924(c), two counts of unlawful distribution of cocaine base in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1), and three counts of unlawful distribution of cocaine in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1).

The Government’s theory of the conspiracy is, generally speaking, that from January 2009 until April 26, 2011, Defendant Edwards supplied cocaine to Defendant Bowman, who then would (1) distribute some of the cocaine to other narcotics traffickers, including Defendant Williams; (2) distribute some of the cocaine on behalf of Defendant Edwards; and (3) convert some of the cocaine into cocaine base, and distribute the cocaine base to Bowman’s own customers. 7/26/12 Mem. Opin., ECF No. [354], at 3. The Government alleges that in or about March or April 2010, Defendant Edwards asked a co-conspirator to “babysit” approximately eighteen kilograms of cocaine and $90,000 in United States currency stored at Defendant Bowman’s apartment, which was purportedly used to store and process cocaine for distribution. Gov’t’s Mot. ¶ 4. Defendant Bowman allegedly forgot to give the co-conspirator the keys to the apartment, thus, when Defendants Bowman and Edwards left the apartment, the co-conspirator was unable to re-enter the apartment. Id. The co-conspirator went home for the evening, during which time Defendant Bowman’s apartment was burglarized, and the cocaine and currency were stolen. Id. Defendant Edwards, upon learning of the burglary, allegedly called a meeting with Bowman, the co-conspirator charged with “babysitting” the cocaine and currency, and another co-conspirator at the latter’s [49] residence. Id. at ¶5. Once the “babysitter” arrived, Edwards ordered the babysitter to the floor at gunpoint. Id. Another co-conspirator tied the babysitter’s hands behind his back, and Edwards threatened to kill the babysitter. Id. After “an extended period of time,” the babysitter convinced Edwards that the babysitter was not involved in the burglary. Id. Defendant Edwards purportedly gave the babysitter one half of a kilogram of cocaine as an apology for his mistake. Id. The conspiracy ceased on April 26, 2011, when agents executed a search warrant for a storage unit allegedly utilized by Defendants Bowman and Edwards and seized over twenty-nine kilograms of cocaine. Id. at ¶ 2. Defendants Bowman, Edwards, and various other co-conspirators were arrested in the proximity of the storage unit. Id. Defendant Williams was arrested along with several other purported co-conspirators on June 22, 2011. Id. at ¶ 3.

II. DISCUSSION

The Government proffers two alternative bases on which to admit evidence of the incident in question. First, the Government argues the evidence is admissible as “intrinsic evidence” of the charged conspiracy. Second, the Government contends the event may be admitted as proper “other crimes evidence” pursuant to Rule 404(b). The Court agrees with the Government’s initial argument, and thus does not reach the second.

The D.C. Circuit has criticized the distinction between “intrinsic” and “extrinsic” evidence, commonly invoked to avoid the procedural requirements associated with introducing “other crimes evidence” pursuant to Federal Rule of Evidence 404(b). United States v. Bowie, 232 F.3d 923, 927 (D.C.Cir.2000). Notably, “intrinsic” evidence of a charged offense will always satisfy the requirements of Rule 404(b), thus the distinction serves only to “relieve the prosecution of Rule 404(b)’s notice requirement and the Court of its obligation to given an appropriate limiting instruction upon defense counsel’s request,” and avoid the balancing requirement of Federal Rule of Evidence 403. Id. The Bowie court explained that although the D.C. Circuit purports to utilize the “inextricably intertwined” test to outline the contours of intrinsic versus extrinsic evidence, it had never previously defined the term. Id. at 928. Attempts by other Circuits to define “inextricably intertwined” proved unhelpful, as they were circular and overly-broad. Id. at 928-29 (rejecting the approach adopted by other Circuits defining “inextricably intertwined” evidence as that which “completes the story” of the charged offense).

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United States v. Edwards, 889 F. Supp. 2d 47, 89 Fed. R. Serv. 399, 2012 WL 3834823, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 125297 (D.D.C. 2012).

889 F. Supp. 2d 47 (United States v. Edwards) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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