United States v. Portillo-Quezada

469 F.3d 1345, 2006 U.S. App. LEXIS 29340, 2006 WL 3423439
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
DecidedNovember 29, 2006
Docket05-3102
StatusPublished
Cited by60 cases

This text of 469 F.3d 1345 (United States v. Portillo-Quezada) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Tenth 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. Portillo-Quezada, 469 F.3d 1345, 2006 U.S. App. LEXIS 29340, 2006 WL 3423439 (10th Cir. 2006).

Opinion

PER CURIAM.

Carlos Portillo-Quezada appeals his jury convictions arising from his leadership of a methamphetamine distribution ring in Kansas City, Kansas. Portillo-Quezada claims the trial court erred in (1) allowing him to appear at voir dire with two co-defendants who were wearing prison clothing; (2) failing to grant a mistrial when the prosecutor suggested at voir dire that his co-defendants looked like drug dealers; (3) allowing the government to present evidence of an uncharged murder on the grounds it was connected to the drug conspiracy; and (4) imposing an unreasonable sentence.

We disagree for the reasons discussed below and AFFIRM the district court.

I. Background

This case arose from a Kansas City police investigation into a large scale methamphetamine distribution ring. Police suspected the ring was organized and operated by three brothers: Portillo-Queza-da and Eloy and Raul Portillo. The three brothers employed numerous other individuals as part of a drug conspiracy to (1) buy and sell drugs; (2) obtain rental properties to use for drug transactions; (3) deliver product; and (4) collect and enforce debts owed to the conspiracy.

*1348 As part of the police investigation, on April 10, 2003 an undercover police officer purchased 55 grams of methamphetamine from Portillo-Quezada in a controlled buy. The undercover officer paid for the drugs with $3,000 in marked bills. The transaction took place at an apartment rented by Carl Rieger, a co-conspirator of Portillo-Quezada, which was rented for the purpose of providing a “storefront” for methamphetamine distribution. At that time, police also suspected that members of the conspiracy were involved in the murder of Bruce Andrews, whose bullet-riddled body had been discovered on April 8.

Six hours after this transaction, Kansas City police executed a search warrant on Rieger’s apartment. The officers executing the search found Portillo-Quezada hiding in a bedroom closet wearing body armor and holding a loaded 9-millimeter handgun. Methamphetamine was scattered about the apartment in plain view.

Portillo-Quezada was arrested and searched. Police found on him $1,390 cash, including $1,090 of the marked bills used by the undercover agent earlier that night. Portillo-Quezada’s brother, Eloy Portillo, was also arrested at the apartment after he was found with drugs, $4,600 cash, and two receipts for the rental of a trailer later found to have been used by the conspiracy for distribution and storage. Several other individuals were arrested as a result of the raid, either at the apartment or elsewhere based on evidence found at the apartment.

Several days later, police questioned Noe Espino, whom police suspected was part of the drug ring. Espino was arrested after he confessed in a police interview that Portillo-Quezada paid him to locate Andrews, the murder victim, and assist in his killing. Espino disclosed that he lured Andrews into a car with the promise of methamphetamine and stolen wheel rims, took him to a vacant lot where Portillo-Quezada shot Andrews at least three times at point-blank range with an assault rifle. Espino told the police that he then assisted Portillo-Quezada in removing Andrews’s body, cleaned the car’s windshield, and then burned the car. He admitted Portil-lo-Quezada paid him $1,000 cash and one half-ounce of methamphetamine for these acts.

Portillo-Quezada and Espino were tried alongside a third co-defendant, Kenneth Waterbury. Waterbury’s role in the conspiracy was to sell and deliver drugs. At trial, a key witness, Rieger, testified that Portillo-Quezada admitted paying Espino $4,000, half of which was in the form of wheel rims, to help kill Andrews. Rieger also testified that Portillo-Quezada told him that he believed Andrews was responsible for the arrest of his brother Raul Portillo on separate drug charges. Another witness, Stephen Ballard, testified to conversations with Portillo-Quezada in which Portillo-Quezada disclosed a desire to kill Andrews because he owed Portillo-Quezada money for drugs he had stolen. Ballard testified to another conversation in which Portillo-Quezada told him that he “killed that [] Bruce.” Supp Vol. IV at 314.

A jury convicted all three defendants for their role in the conspiracy. Portillo-Que-zada was convicted of: (1) conspiracy to distribute in excess of 500 grams of methamphetamine in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2 and 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and (b)(l)(A)(viii); (2) distribution of five or more grams of methamphetamine in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2 and 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) and (b)(l)(B)(viii); (3) possession with intent to distribute five or more grams of methamphetamine in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2 and 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and 842(b)(l)(B)(viii); and (4) possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug traffick *1349 ing in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 2 and 924(c)(1)(A).

II. Analysis

Portillo-Quezada claims the district court erred at trial in two ways. First, he contends the court violated his due process rights when it allowed two co-defendants to appear before the jury pool in prison clothing. That error was compounded, he claims, by the prosecutor’s later reference to the way “drug dealers” look, a thinly veiled comment on the appearance of Por-tillo-Quezada’s co-defendants. Second, he argues the district court erred in admitting testimony connecting the murder of Bruce Andrews to the drug conspiracy. Portillo-Quezada also claims that the court erred by imposing an unconstitutional sentence or, in the alternative, a sentence unreasonable under United States v. Booker, 543 U.S. 220, 125 S.Ct. 738, 160 L.Ed.2d 621 (2005).

We address each argument in turn.

A. Voir Dire

1. Appearance in Prison Clothing

On the first day of trial, Portillo-Queza-da’s co-defendants, Espino and Waterbury, appeared in the court room in prison eloth-ing apparently because friends or family had been unable to arrive in time with a clothing change. Portillo-Quezada wore street clothes. Before voir dire questioning began, the district court asked the defendants if they were prepared to proceed with voir dire given Espino’s and Waterbury’s appearance.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

United States v. Perrault
995 F.3d 748 (Tenth Circuit, 2021)
United States v. Oldman
979 F.3d 1234 (Tenth Circuit, 2020)
United States v. Cisneros
Tenth Circuit, 2017
United States v. Pawelski
651 F. App'x 750 (Tenth Circuit, 2016)
United States v. Loya-Medina
552 F. App'x 805 (Tenth Circuit, 2014)
United States v. Waseta
647 F.3d 980 (Tenth Circuit, 2011)
United States v. Portillo-Quezada
415 F. App'x 86 (Tenth Circuit, 2011)
United States v. Minners
362 F. App'x 931 (Tenth Circuit, 2010)
United States v. Rivera Calderon
578 F.3d 78 (First Circuit, 2009)
State v. Jones, 2008-L-028 (12-12-2008)
2008 Ohio 6559 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2008)
United States v. Graham
314 F. App'x 114 (Tenth Circuit, 2008)
State v. Mattes, 2008-P-0022 (9-26-2008)
2008 Ohio 4972 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2008)
State v. Mansfield, 2007-L-173 (7-25-2008)
2008 Ohio 3989 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2008)
United States v. Smith
534 F.3d 1211 (Tenth Circuit, 2008)
United States v. Scott
529 F.3d 1290 (Tenth Circuit, 2008)
State v. Collins, 89808 (6-12-2008)
2008 Ohio 3016 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2008)
State v. Kimble, 2007-T-0066 (5-23-2008)
2008 Ohio 2505 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2008)
State v. Medina, 2007-L-025 (5-23-2008)
2008 Ohio 2511 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2008)
State v. Dackiewicz, 2007-L-174 (4-18-2008)
2008 Ohio 1895 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2008)
State v. Hunger, 2007-L-077 (4-4-2008)
2008 Ohio 1655 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2008)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
469 F.3d 1345, 2006 U.S. App. LEXIS 29340, 2006 WL 3423439, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-portillo-quezada-ca10-2006.