Source: https://casetext.com/case/united-states-v-blanton-11
Timestamp: 2019-11-12 19:40:35
Document Index: 366166788

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 841', '§ 843', '§ 842', '§ 801', '§ 822', '§ 822', '§ 823', '§ 828', '§ 828', '§ 1305', '§ 1305', '§ 1301', '§ 1301', '§ 1301', '§ 827', '§ 827', '§ 1304', '§ 841', '§ 841', '§ 822', '§ 842', '§ 843', '§ 843', '§ 827', '§ 1304']

United States v. Blanton, 730 F.2d 1425 | Casetext
730 F.2d 1425 (11th Cir. 1984)
United Statesv.Blanton
United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh CircuitApr 30, 1984
(Doc. 58, PAGEID# 803). These instructions were based upon United States v. Blanton, 730 F.2d 1425 (11th Cir.…
The provision that gives rise to the cause of action against McAllister, section 842(a)(5), includes the…
holding that individuals who lack a valid DEA registration are not authorized to dispense controlled substances
Summary of this case from Duval v. United States
holding that section 842 applied to a physician who was not properly registered with the DEA
A jury convicted Frederick Marsh Blanton, a medical doctor specializing in ophthamology, on three counts of distributing methaqualone (quaaludes), a controlled substance in violation of 21 U.S.C.A. § 841(a)(1), one count of acquiring a controlled substance by fraud, misrepresentation, and deception in violation of 21 U.S.C.A. § 843(a)(3), and one count of failing to keep accurate records of controlled substances dispensed in violation of 21 U.S.C.A. § 842(a)(5). Blanton raises a number of issues on appeal: misconstruction of the governing statute by the district court; sufficiency of the evidence; various evidentiary rulings; and violation of his fifth amendment privilege against self-incrimination. We affirm.
A brief review of the federal statutory scheme embodied in the Controlled Substances Act, 21 U.S.C.A. § 801 et seq., which regulates the means by which medical doctors may acquire and dispense controlled substances is necessary to an understanding of defendant's contentions.
This footnote contains a more detailed summary of the Controlled Substances Act.
To possess or dispense a controlled substance, doctors must be licensed to practice medicine and register annually with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). 21 U.S.C.A. § 822. Doctors may acquire and dispense controlled substances "to the extent authorized by their registration." Id. § 822(b). The registration application contains a separate box denoting each schedule and directs applicants to check each box which is applicable in registering for desired schedules. The statute mandates that the DEA register physicians in every schedule they check if the physicians are authorized by state law to dispense the substances included in that schedule. Id. § 823(f).
Physicians and other registrants must obtain controlled substances from pharmaceutical supply houses on forms prescribed and supplied by the DEA. Id. § 828. These preprinted forms show a registrant's name, address, and the schedules for which he is registered. Id. § 828(d)(1). The forms have three parts. 21 C.F.R. §§ 1305.05, 1305.06. When a registrant orders a controlled substance, he fills in the order form, sending the first two copies to the supply house and keeping the third copy as his own record of what he ordered. The supply house keeps the first copy for its records and forwards the second copy to the DEA. Id. § 1305.09. The testimony at trial showed the agency maintains routine computerized surveillance of all the forms it receives to determine whether registrants order unusually large amounts of controlled substances or have unusual buying patterns. Such cases are referred to compliance investigators for further scrutiny.
A physician may apply for registration either to dispense or to conduct research with different requirements for narcotics and non-narcotics. Id. § 1301.22. A doctor registered to dispense a narcotic substance must register separately to conduct research using that substance. Id. § 1301.22(a)(6). A practitioner who is registered to dispense a non-narcotic substance, however, may also conduct research using that substance without a separate registration. Id. § 1301.22(b)(6). The drug here involved, methaqualone, is a non-narcotic substance.
Recordkeeping is required of physicians who dispense controlled substances. 21 U.S.C.A. § 827(a)(3). The recordkeeping requirements are not applicable, however, to registered physicians who dispense non-narcotic controlled substances without charge. Id. § 827(c)(1)(B); 21 C.F.R. § 1304.03(c).
Defendant disputes his conviction on three counts of dispensing methaqualone in violation of 21 U.S.C.A. § 841(a)(1), the general criminal provision of the Controlled Substances Act, on the ground that the trial judge improperly charged the jury that he could be convicted for simply not complying with the technicalities of the registration requirement. The primary issue is whether a physician who dispenses a controlled substance in knowing violation of the Controlled Substances Act's registration requirement can be convicted under 21 U.S.C.A. § 841(a)(1) without proof that the drugs were dispensed outside the bounds of professional practice. Defendant correctly asserts that under the charge given by the trial court he could have been convicted of a section 841(a)(1) violation by simply willfully not registering for methaqualone but dispensing it anyway. Contrary to defendant's argument, however, this correctly states the law.
In pertinent part, section 841(a)(1) reads: "except as authorized by this subchapter, it shall be unlawful for any person knowingly or intentionally — (1) to manufacture, distribute, or possess with intent to manufacture, distribute, or dispense, a controlled substance. . . ." Section 822(b) defines what activities are authorized by the subchapter and by implication fills out the "except as authorized by this subchapter" part of section 841.
Persons registered by the Attorney General under this subchapter to manufacture, distribute, or dispense controlled substances are authorized to possess, manufacture, distribute, or dispense such substances . . . to the extent authorized by their registration. . . .
21 U.S.C.A. § 822(b) (emphasis added). Thus, under the plain language of the statute, a person who is not registered by the Attorney General for a given substance is not authorized to dispense it and thus is not excepted from prosecution under section 841.
Defendant attempts to avoid this conclusion by arguing that section 841 was designed to criminalize the activities of drug pushers and not registrants who technically violate the registration provisions of the Act. Defendant contends that "technical" violations involving registration can only be prosecuted under 21 U.S.C.A. §§ 842 and § 843. To support this argument, defendant cites United States v. Moore, 423 U.S. 122, 96 S.Ct. 335, 46 L.Ed.2d 333 (1975). Although some of the language in Moore appears to buttress defendant's position, the case is of limited relevance because of its different factual setting. Moore involved the question of whether a physician could ever be prosecuted under section 841(a)(1) for dispensing drugs for which he was registered. The Supreme Court held that a physician could violate section 841 even when acting pursuant to his registration if he exceeded the usual course of professional practice, only the lawful acts of registrants being exempted. Moore does not, however, support the argument that a physician not registered to dispense the drugs he is dispensing could not be prosecuted if his activity would be within the usual course of professional practice, if he had been registered. Defendant clearly falls within the statutory prohibition and not the exception because he was not registered to dispense methaqualone.
(a) It shall be unlawful for any person —
(9) to distribute or sell piperidine in violation of regulations established under section 830(a)(2) of this title, respecting presentation of identification.
(a) It shall be unlawful for any person knowingly or intentionally —
(4)(A) to furnish false or fraudulent material information in, or omit any material information from, any application, report, record, or other document required to be made, kept, or filed under this subchapter or subchapter II of this chapter, or (B) to present false or fraudulent identification where the person is receiving or purchasing piperidine and the person is required to present identification under section 830(a) of this title; or
The "concept of `registration'" is the heart of the statute. United States v. Moore, 423 U.S. at 140, 96 S.Ct. at 344. Registration circumscribes the authority to dispense controlled substances. Section 822(b) allows practitioners to dispense controlled substances only "to the extent authorized by their registration". The statute is sufficiently clear to prevent an interpretation that physicians can dispense drugs for which they are not registered. Defendant notes that under section 823(f) federal registration follows automatically if a physician is permitted to dispense controlled substances under state law. From this, he argues actual registration is unnecessary. Section 823(f), however, does not circumvent the registration requirement. The section merely provides automatic approval for state-licensed physicians who actually register. It does not act as registration for dispensation of drugs for which the physician is not registered.
Viewing the evidence in light most favorable to the Government, we conclude that a reasonable trier of fact could find the evidence established that defendant was guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Glasser v. United States, 315 U.S. 60, 80, 62 S.Ct. 457, 469, 86 L.Ed. 680 (1942); United States v. Bell, 678 F.2d 547, 549 (5th Cir. Unit B) (en banc), aff'd on other grounds, ___ U.S. ___, 103 S.Ct. 2398, 76 L.Ed.2d 638 (1983).
Defendant did not object to the testimony about the .45 caliber pistol or that defendant appeared to be intoxicated. We hold the admission of this evidence did not amount to plain error. The testimony regarding the shotgun and the bag of marijuana did not fall within the prohibition of Rule 404(b). Defendant was charged with possessing and distributing methaqualone other than for a legitimate medical purpose and outside the usual course of his medical practice. The transactions occurring at the time defendant was arrested were part of the res gestae of the offense. United States v. Kloock, 652 F.2d 492, 494-95 (5th Cir. 1981); United States v. Killian, 639 F.2d 206, 211 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 451 U.S. 1021, 101 S.Ct. 3014, 69 L.Ed.2d 394 (1981).
A. To the best — yes, I am sure.
A. My wife died of an — accidental combination of overdose of Seconal plus a piece of frankfurter being lodged in her trachea. That is the windpipe, sir.
Blanton's attorney immediately asked to approach the bench and moved for a mistrial on the ground that the evidence was irrelevant and prejudicial. To the contrary, the evidence was relevant to the attitude defendant displayed towards the substances he dispensed. Defendant repeatedly sought to establish that he was involved in legitimate research using methaqualone. Immediately prior to the quoted exchange, defendant testified that he would have known if anyone involved in his research project had ever overdosed and "[i]f they messed up, they were off the project." Throughout his testimony, defendant portrayed himself as being meticulously careful when dispensing controlled substances. Having inserted this issue into the trial, Blanton cannot now complain about the Government's effort to show the opposite, that he cavalierly acquired and dispensed controlled substances.
The issue is whether the prosecution may allude in its case in chief to a defendant's pre-arrest silence in response to governmental questioning, where defendant subsequently takes the stand and testifies. The evidence would have been admissible in rebuttal, if the defendant took the stand and claimed to have told an exculpatory story to the authorities. Doyle v. Ohio, 426 U.S. 610, 619 n. 11, 96 S.Ct. 2240, 2245 n. 11, 49 L.Ed.2d 91 (1976). Blanton did not so testify. We have found only one case involving similar circumstances to the case at bar. In United States v. Caro, 637 F.2d 869 (2d Cir. 1981), the prosecutor elicited testimony from a customs agent that the defendant had not said anything during the search of a suitcase. The court stated it had "found no decision permitting the use of silence, even the silence of a suspect who has been given no Miranda warnings and is entitled to none, as part of the Government's direct case." Id. at 876. The court further noted that all of the cases which allowed evidence regarding a defendant's silence, including Jenkins v. Anderson, 447 U.S. 231, 100 S.Ct. 2124, 65 L.Ed.2d 86 (1980), have involved impeachment or rebuttal of the defendant's testimony. The Caro court ultimately held the error harmless because the evidence could have been used to rebut the defendant's testimony that he was shocked to see the contraband in his suitcase and defendant withdrew his objection to the testimony. 637 F.2d at 876.
In a case involving a comment on the defendant's failure to testify at trial, the Supreme Court has recently admonished appellate courts to dutifully "consider the trial record as a whole and to ignore errors that are harmless, including most constitutional violations." United States v. Hasting, ___ U.S. ___, 103 S.Ct. 1974, 76 L.Ed.2d 96 (1983). The Court stated the dispositive question is whether, absent the prosecutor's allusion, it is clear beyond a reasonable doubt that the jury would have returned a verdict of guilt. In Blanton's case, it seems clear beyond doubt that, absent the question and answer regarding Blanton's statement that he did not want to say any more about what he had done with the pills, the verdict would have been the same. The evidence of guilt was overwhelming. Blanton's statement was never again referred to by anyone. There is no indication that Blanton took the stand solely because of this evidence introduced in the Government's opening case. The error, if error at all, was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt.
Section 843(a)(3) Violations
Count 4 of the indictment charged that defendant intentionally obtained approximately 308,000 units of methaqualone by misrepresentation, fraud, or deception by ordering the Schedule II N substance knowing he was registered for only Schedule II drugs in violation of § 843(a)(3). Defendant claims he could not have deceived DEA because the order forms he used clearly showed he was registered to handle only Schedule II substances. He also reasserts his contentions that registration for Schedule II N was superfluous because he was registered in Schedule II. Finally, he claims even if registration was necessary his actions were at most technical, as opposed to knowing, violations of the statute. The "automatic registration" and "technical" violator arguments have been dealt with above. The other argument is meritless as well. The jury could find that ordering a Schedule II N drug on a form which only authorizes the ordering of Schedule II drugs constitutes deceit and subterfuge. In fact, this was exactly defendant's plan as revealed in his phone call to DEA Administrator William Lenck.
Section 842(a)(5) Violation
There is no statutory support for defendant's contention that he was not required to keep research records and thus did not violate section 842(a)(5). Although he is correct that 21 U.S.C.A. § 827(c)(1)(B) and 21 C.F.R. § 1304.03(c) (1982) exempt doctors from record-keeping requirements when they dispense non-narcotic substances without charge, the exemptions apply only to those doctors who are otherwise properly registered to dispense such substances. Defendant was not properly registered.