2010 Decisions

Opinions of the United

States Court of Appeals

for the Third Circuit

12-22-2010

USA v. Christian

Precedential or Non-Precedential: Non-Precedential

Docket No. 07-2836

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Recommended Citation

"USA v. Christian" (2010). 2010 Decisions. Paper 44.

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1

NOT PRECEDENTIAL

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT 

_____________

No. 07-2836

_____________

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

v.

DWAYNE CHRISTIAN,

 Appellant

_____________

 

On Appeal from the District Court

of the United States Virgin Islands

District Court No. 06-cr-00037-1

U.S. District Judge: The Honorable Harvey Bartle, III 

Submitted Pursuant to Third Circuit L.A.R. 34.1(a)

December 17, 2010

Before: McKEE, Chief Judge, FUENTES and SMITH, Circuit Judges

(Filed: December 22, 2010)

 

_____________________

 OPINION

_____________________ 

SMITH, Circuit Judge.

Dwayne Christian was convicted by a jury of aiding and abetting the possession, 

with the intent to distribute, of at least 5 kilograms of marijuana in violation of 21 U.S.C. 

§ 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(D), and 18 U.S.C. § 2. He was sentenced, inter alia, to six months 
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imprisonment and three years of supervised release. This timely appeal followed.1 

Christian’s sole argument on appeal is that the District Court erred in denying his 

motion under Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 29 for judgment of acquittal. 

According to Christian, the evidence to support his conviction was insufficient. We 

“review[] the sufficiency of the evidence in the light most favorable to the government 

and must credit all available inferences in favor of the government.” United States v. 

Riddick, 156 F.3d 505, 509 (3d Cir. 1998). If a rational juror could have found the 

elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt, we must sustain the verdict. United 

States v. Cartwright, 359 F.3d 281, 286 (3d Cir. 2004).

At trial, the evidence, viewed in the light most favorable to the government,

established that Virgin Islands Police Officer Angel Diaz arrived at 100A Grove Place, 

Frederiksted, to execute an arrest warrant for Christian’s brother, Darwin. Diaz honked 

the horn several times and Darwin exited the trailer, asking if Diaz was there for him. 

When Diaz replied affirmatively, Darwin indicated he would get his shoes from inside 

the trailer. Diaz refused to allow Darwin to return to the residence. At that point, Darwin 

started running toward the rear of the trailer, down a hill towards some bushes, discarding 

an object in the process. Diaz apprehended and arrested Darwin, placing him in the 

custody of other officers to transport to the police station. Because Diaz had observed 

Darwin discarding an object, he retraced the path of the chase and located a clear plastic 

bag containing four rock-like substances, which subsequently tested positive for crack 

 

1

 The District Court exercised jurisdiction pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3231 and 48 U.S.C. § 

1612(a). We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291.
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cocaine. In retracing his steps, Diaz crossed a water hose, which originated in the trailer 

and extended down the hill to a wooden structure. Diaz also observed that the wooden 

structure had an air conditioning unit, which was in operation at that time, and that light 

was visible in the doorframe of the wooden structure. Based on these facts, Diaz 

suspected an indoor growth operation for marijuana and requested a search warrant for 

the premises. 

While Diaz was retracing the path of the chase, Christian arrived at 100A Grove 

Place, looking for his brother Darwin. Christian advised Diaz that the officers had to 

leave because they were on his property. Diaz refused, explaining that the law 

enforcement authorities were conducting a criminal investigation. 

Execution of a search warrant later that day revealed that there were 78 marijuana

plants inside the wooden structure, together with an air conditioner, a fluorescent light, 

and a transformer. Inside the trailer, Diaz found two plastic ziploc bags of marijuana in 

the freezer. In a kitchen cabinet, the officers located a scale and small baggies, which are 

used in packaging marijuana, cocaine, and crack. During the search, Diaz also obtained 

the assistance of employees from the Virgin Islands Water & Power Authority (WAPA)

to ascertain the power source for the air conditioning unit in the wooden structure. When 

the meter for the trailer was disconnected, the air conditioning unit in the wooden 

structure ceased operation.

After the wooden structure was searched, Virgin Islands Police Officer 

Christopher Howell asked Christian who owned it. Christian stated that he “owned 

everything.” An employee from the Recorder of Deeds Office testified during the trial 
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that the deed for the 100A Grove Place property vested title in Christian, and that 

Christian had obtained a mortgage secured by the property. A friend of Christian’s from 

work testified that Christian lived in a trailer on his property. The WAPA billing records 

for the property indicated that the account was in Christian’s name.

Immediately following the close of the evidence, Christian moved for a judgment 

of acquittal, contending that the evidence was insufficient. Without explanation, the 

Court denied the motion with respect to the aiding and abetting offense. 

On appeal, we must determine if a rational juror could find from the evidence that 

the substantive crime of possession with the intent to distribute marijuana had been 

committed, and that Christian “knew of th[is] crime and attempted to facilitate it.” 

United States v. Garth, 188 F.3d 99, 113 (3d Cir. 1999).

We conclude that there is sufficient evidence. The 78 marijuana plants were found 

on Christian’s property in a structure that was easily accessible from his residence. 

Additional marijuana was found in the kitchen of Christian’s residence, together with 

objects used to package marijuana. Furthermore, the plants were supplied with the 

necessary electricity and water from Christian’s residence. The bills for these utilities 

were in Christian’s name.

We will affirm the District Court’s judgment.