United States v. Keith Lowe

110 F.3d 65, 1997 U.S. App. LEXIS 11231
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
DecidedApril 4, 1997
Docket96-3894
StatusUnpublished

This text of 110 F.3d 65 (United States v. Keith Lowe) 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. Keith Lowe, 110 F.3d 65, 1997 U.S. App. LEXIS 11231 (6th Cir. 1997).

Opinion

110 F.3d 65

NOTICE: Sixth Circuit Rule 24(c) states that citation of unpublished dispositions is disfavored except for establishing res judicata, estoppel, or the law of the case and requires service of copies of cited unpublished dispositions of the Sixth Circuit.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.
Keith LOWE, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 95-4097, 96-3894.

United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit.

April 4, 1997.

Before: KENNEDY, KRUPANSKY, and NORRIS, Circuit Judges.

KENNEDY, Circuit Judge.

In these consolidated appeals, defendant appeals his conviction and sentence for conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute cocaine base, commonly referred to as "crack cocaine" or "crack." Asserting that the District Court improperly allowed the introduction of a shotgun as evidence at his trial, defendant requests a new trial. He also argues that the District Court overestimated the amount of drugs attributable to him for sentencing purposes, and improperly enhanced his sentence due to his use of a dangerous weapon during the offense and his role as a supervisor of the drug conspiracy. Finally, defendant appeals the denial of his motion for new trial based upon newly discovered evidence. For the following reasons, we AFFIRM the conviction and sentence of defendant and the denial of his motion for a new trial.

I.

On February 28, 1995, a federal grand jury indicted defendant for one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute crack cocaine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and 846. The grand jury also indicted Supreena Smith, Patricia Gilmore, and Saleena Thorn on identical and related drug counts.

Codefendants, Gilmore and Thorn, pleaded guilty pursuant to plea agreements with the government and testified in detail regarding drug activities in which they participated with defendant and Smith from April of 1994 until their arrests on December 11, 1994. In particular, they testified that, during the time period at issue, Gilmore and defendant sold crack cocaine from various houses in Steubenville, Ohio. They also testified that defendant would travel to Aliquippa, Pennsylvania in order to buy crack, which he would bring back with him to Steubenville in order to prepare and sell.

Gilmore and Thorn described a trip they made with defendant to Aliquippa on December 9, 1994. The purpose of the trip was to buy more crack and pick up Smith, who lived in Pennsylvania. When Smith walked to their car, she was carrying a sawed-off shotgun wrapped in a gown, which defendant placed in the trunk. Gilmore and Thorn both testified that defendant explained to them that the gun was his and that he had instructed Smith to bring it so that he could use it for protection during their drug dealings. Although they were unable to purchase crack that evening, they returned to Pennsylvania the next night and bought four ounces.

Several police officers also testified at trial. Their testimony revealed in part that, on December 11, 1994, government informant Tamara Toudle made two controlled purchases of crack from Gilmore at a home located on 810 South Street in Steubenville. Based on these purchases, the police executed a search warrant at the house. When they entered, defendant, Smith, Thorn and Gilmore all were present; after defendant and Gilmore unsuccessfully attempted to flee, the police arrested all four individuals. After a search of the house, which one officer described upon cross-examination as "thorough," the police confiscated part of an ounce of crack, a scale, a pager, cash, and two knives.

During cross-examination, officer Anthony Adriano testified that investigative reports compiled by the police did not refer to defendant until November, 1994, even though the police began to monitor the drug activities of Thorn and Gilmore in April, 1994.

Two informants, William Green and Tamara Toudle, also testified. Green testified about the drug activities of Gilmore, Thorn, and defendant. Although he stated that Gilmore sold most of the drugs, Green indicated that defendant had sold drugs to him once or twice. Toudle, the cousin of defendant, offered similar testimony, stating that defendant sold her drugs on one occasion. She also testified, however, that she saw defendant preparing and packaging crack and counting drug funds at various crack houses. Toudle further stated that defendant and Gilmore sold drugs out of her house at one time.

The weekend before trial, and six months after the arrests, Gilmore and Thorn told the police that if they returned to the house at 810 South Street, they still could find the shotgun and the three ounces of unrecovered crack which Gilmore had purchased in Pennsylvania on December 10, 1994. Defendant asserts that Gilmore then telephoned the then-current occupant of the residence. When police arrived at the house, the occupant greeted them at the door and turned over a sawed-off shotgun approximately two feet in length. The police could not locate the three ounces of crack.

At trial, the District Court admitted into evidence the shotgun recovered by the police. Both Thorn and Gilmore identified the gun as the weapon which Smith gave to defendant on December 9, 1994. Defendant objected to the admission of the weapon, arguing that there was no reliable evidence of its authenticity.

On May 26, 1995 the jury returned a verdict of guilty against defendant and a verdict of not guilty against Smith. On June 22, 1995, the District Court denied defendant's motion for a new trial.

On September 29, 1995, the District Court sentenced defendant to a term of 240 months, followed by five years of supervised release; although the sentencing range for defendant under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines was 360 months to life imprisonment, the statutory maximum sentence for his crime was twenty years. See 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(C). Defendant then filed the first of these consolidated appeals, assailing his conviction and sentence.

On July 9, 1996, defendant filed before the District Court a motion for new trial based on newly discovered evidence. Defendant submitted the affidavits of Toudle and Green, in which they asserted that defendant had not provided drugs to either of them, that they never had seen him with a weapon, and that their intent at trial had been to testify against Gilmore and Thorn. Each also stated that "I have been a user of drugs and that the use of those drugs affected my memory and testimony." On August 5, 1996, the District Court issued an order denying this motion. Defendant then filed the second of these consolidated appeals.

II.

Defendant contests the admission of the shotgun into evidence, arguing that the government failed to authenticate the weapon. We review challenges to authenticity by deciding whether the district court abused its discretion by admitting the evidence. See United States v. Hatfield, 815 F.2d 1068, 1074 n. 4 (6th Cir.1987); see also United States v. Moreno, 933 F.2d 362

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Bluebook (online)
110 F.3d 65, 1997 U.S. App. LEXIS 11231, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-keith-lowe-ca6-1997.