United States v. John Wright Kim Bennet Larry Reid and John D'Annunzio

12 F.3d 215, 1993 U.S. App. LEXIS 36660
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
DecidedNovember 10, 1993
Docket92-2420
StatusUnpublished

This text of 12 F.3d 215 (United States v. John Wright Kim Bennet Larry Reid and John D'Annunzio) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Sixth 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. John Wright Kim Bennet Larry Reid and John D'Annunzio, 12 F.3d 215, 1993 U.S. App. LEXIS 36660 (6th Cir. 1993).

Opinion

12 F.3d 215

NOTICE: Sixth Circuit Rule 24(c) states that citation of unpublished dispositions is disfavored except for establishing res judicata, estoppel, or the law of the case and requires service of copies of cited unpublished dispositions of the Sixth Circuit.
UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
John WRIGHT; Kim Bennet; Larry Reid; and John D'Annunzio,
Defendants-Appellants.

Nos. 91-2276, 91-2413, 92-2420, 92-1029.

United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit.

Nov. 10, 1993.

Before: KEITH and BOGGS, Circuit Judges; and GIBBONS, District Judge.*

PER CURIAM:

This is a consolidated appeal by four defendants who were convicted of drug-trafficking crimes stemming from a marijuana distribution ring in Detroit, Michigan. A jury convicted John Wright of conspiracy to possess marijuana with intent to distribute, in violation of 21 U.S.C. Sec. 846; possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, in violation of 21 U.S.C. Sec. 841(a)(1); money laundering, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 371; and engaging in monetary transactions from an illegal source, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1957. Kim Bennet, Larry Reid, and John D'Annunzio were convicted of conspiracy to possess marijuana with intent to distribute, in violation of 21 U.S.C. Sec. 846. On appeal, the defendants raise claims of insufficient evidence, prejudicial joinder, erroneous jury instructions, prosecutorial misconduct, improperly admitted evidence, and misapplication of the United States Sentencing Guidelines. We reverse the conviction of D'Annunzio because it is not supported by sufficient evidence. We affirm the convictions of Reid, Wright, and Bennet.

* A

All defendants were allegedly part of a drug-trafficking conspiracy organized and managed by Michael Shandilis. Shandilis began the organization in 1985, and over the next five years arranged for the shipment of over 20,000 pounds of marijuana from Brian Ziener, his source of supply in Palm Desert, California. Ziener or Shandilis paid drivers to drive pick-up trucks loaded with 500 to 1000 pounds of marijuana from California to pre-arranged locations in the Detroit area. The marijuana was then transported from these locations to several houses, where it would be broken down from bale form, stored, and packed in heat-sealed packages for distribution. Shandilis and his runners distributed the packages on a credit basis to numerous retail suppliers. Shandilis stored the money at his house and in safes installed in his co-conspirators' houses. After a sufficient amount of money had been accumulated, the money would be shipped to Ziener in increments of $300,000 to $800,000.

In March 1989, 1040 pounds of marijuana was seized from a house at 1945 County Farm Road. In addition, over $160,000 in cash was seized from a safe in Shandilis's house. Shandilis testified at trial that at the time of the seizures, the organization had over 3,000 pounds stored in various locations in the Detroit area, with a wholesale value of over $3,000,000. According to Shandilis's ledgers, he was owed at least $3,300,000 from 18 different individuals for marijuana he distributed on consignment.

Shandilis executed a plea agreement under Rule 11, Fed.R.Crim.P., under which he agreed to plead guilty to two counts and to testify against his co-conspirators in exchange for the government dropping seven counts. The agreement stipulated that his maximum sentence would be twenty years.

B

We briefly summarize each defendant's involvement in the conspiracy.

John Wright owned the property at 1945 County Farm Road, where 1040 pounds of marijuana was seized. Shandilis testified that he provided $60,000 of the $90,000 down payment on the property, with Wright providing the remainder, and that he provided money for Wright to make the monthly mortgage payments and pay the utilities. The government seized checks and utility bills from Wright that showed he paid the utilities from his personal checking account. Shandilis testified that he paid Wright between $20 and $30 for each pound of marijuana stored at his house. Other witnesses testified that Wright paid them between $100 and $300 per day to "babysit" or guard the marijuana when he was away.

Wright also participated in the conspiracy in other ways. Witnesses testified that Wright assisted Shandilis in drying out 3,000 pounds of marijuana in the basement of his house after it was discovered to be moldy; that he drove loads of marijuana, ranging from 400 to 700 pounds, from California and New York to Detroit; and that he made local deliveries to retail sellers in the Detroit area.

Kim Bennet, according to the testimony of Shandilis and others, stored marijuana in his home for the organization, delivered marijuana to various sellers, assisted Shandilis and Wright in drying the moldy marijuana, and collected money from various dealers. Also, Bennet was recorded on Shandilis's ledgers as having received marijuana on consignment.

Larry Reid, according to testimony of Shandilis and others, was a large-scale distributor of marijuana for the organization. The seized ledgers showed that "High" owed Shandilis $177,000 for marijuana already delivered on consignment. Shandilis testified that "High" is Reid's nickname; Reid is a salesman at Highland Appliance.

John D'Annunzio was a friend of John Wright. The government claimed that D'Annunzio was paid approximately $1,000 to babysit the marijuana at 1945 County Farm on Thanksgiving weekend in 1988. The government also claimed that D'Annunzio assisted Wright on more than one occasion when Wright delivered marijuana to John DeBono, a dealer who pled guilty and testified as a witness for the government.

II

D'Annunzio, Reid, and Bennet each claim prejudicial joinder. None of the defendants raised this issue during trial, and no one moved for severance at the close of the government's case or at the close of all the evidence. Therefore, the issue is waived and can not be reviewed by this court absent a manifest miscarriage of justice. United States v. Patrick, 965 F.2d 1390, 1400 (6th Cir.), cert. denied, 113 S.Ct. 376, 1378 (1992).

In general, parties who are jointly indicted are tried together. In order to escape this general rule, the defendants "must carry the 'heavy burden of showing specific and compelling prejudice resulting from a joint trial which can be rectified only by separate trials.' " United States v. Davis, 809 F.2d 1194, 1207 (6th Cir.) (quoting United States v. Dempsey, 733 F.2d 392, 398 (6th Cir.1984)), cert. denied, 483 U.S. 1007 (1987).

The defendants were named in an eight-count indictment, involving fifteen defendants. All fifteen defendants were named in Count One. Of the four defendants who went to trial, only Bennet and Wright were named in Count Two, and only Wright was named in Counts Three through Five. Shandilis, who pled guilty, was the only defendant named in Counts Six through Eight.

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Bluebook (online)
12 F.3d 215, 1993 U.S. App. LEXIS 36660, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-john-wright-kim-bennet-larry-reid-and-john-dannunzio-ca6-1993.