Opinion ID: 758068
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Counsel's Failure to Object to Drug Quantities

Text: 33 The defendant next contends that he was denied effective assistance of counsel at sentencing and that this denial ultimately led to a sentencing error on the part of the trial court. Specifically, Gray-Bey argues that his counsel failed to properly object to a finding in the presentence report that Gray-Bey was responsible for between fifteen and fifty kilos of cocaine. This finding was ultimately adopted by the trial court and formed the basis of the court's determination that Gray-Bey's base offense level was 34. The amount of cocaine listed in the presentence report was derived from the total amount of cocaine distributed over the entire course of the conspiracy. On appeal, Gray-Bey argues that he should have been found responsible only for the one and one-half kilos of cocaine found in his car and the six-ounces from the transaction involving Daniels and Henry. Thus, Gray-Bey argues that he should have been found responsible purely for the cocaine that was directly attributable to him and not the cocaine distributed by his co-conspirators. 34 However, the law of this circuit, which dictates that a defendant in a drug conspiracy is responsible not only for the drugs with which he was directly involved but also for any drugs reasonably foreseeable in connection with the criminal conduct that he agreed to undertake in furtherance of the conspiracy while he was a member of the conspiracy, flies in the face of Gray-Bey's argument that he should be liable for only the cocaine directly attributable to him. See Nichols v. United States, 75 F.3d 1137, 1141 (7th Cir.1996) (citing U.S.S.G. § 1B1.3(a)(1)). A defendant is responsible for the acts of his coconspirators if those acts: 1) were reasonably foreseeable to the defendant; and 2) were in furtherance of the conspiracy. See Pinkerton v. United States, 328 U.S. 640, 646, 66 S.Ct. 1180, 1183-84, 90 L.Ed. 1489 (1946). The rule in Pinkerton, known as the aggregation rule, allows the district court to aggregate all the quantities of drugs involved in an entire, basic scheme of multiple defendants when it determines an individual defendant's base offense level. United States v. Taylor, 72 F.3d 533, 547-48 (7th Cir.1995) (citations and internal quotations omitted). This Court has repeatedly adopted the Supreme Court's Pinkerton standard. For example, in United States v. Tolson, 988 F.2d 1494, 1503 (7th Cir.1993), the defendant was arrested for distributing 358 pounds of marijuana, but was later convicted by the trial court for being part of a conspiracy that distributed between 3,000 and 4,000 pounds of marijuana. This Court, implicitly adopting the Pinkerton rule, held that the amount of narcotics considered in sentencing a co-conspirator for a given conspiracy includes not only the amount involved in the transactions ... but also those that were reasonably foreseeable, reflecting the fact each conspirator is responsible for the acts and offenses of each one of his co-conspirators committed in the furtherance of the conspiracy. Id. at 1502 (citation and internal quotation omitted). In affirming the trial court's conviction, the Court concluded that the defendant was not hired to help off-load a single shipment [of marijuana] but was an active participant in the drug conspiracy. He aided in harvesting and transporting three or four loads of marijuana, was present at another delivery ... and knew of other conspirators involved. Id. at 1503 (internal quotation omitted). Similarly, in United States v. Price, 988 F.2d 712, 721 (7th Cir.1993), the defendant was indicted for distributing 100 kilos of marijuana, but was later convicted by the trial court for distributing 681 kilos, as part of a conspiracy. We held that defendants are liable for the entire quantity of drugs involved in a drug conspiracy ... [when] the defendants were substantially involved in the conspiracy and knew or reasonably should have known of the quantity of drugs handled by the conspiracy. Id. (citation and internal quotation omitted). This Court affirmed the trial court's findings that the defendant was a leader and/or organizer of the drug conspiracy and that he was responsible for the entire 681 kilos of marijuana involved in the conspiracy because [he] knew of or reasonably should have known of the extent of the conspiracy he helped lead. Id. (emphasis added). Finally, in United States v. Edwards, 115 F.3d 1322, 1325 (7th Cir.1997), the defendant was found liable for distributing forty-seven kilos of heroin, the entire quantity of drugs attributable to the conspiracy of which he was a part. In affirming the trial court's conviction, we held that the defendant's 35 actual participation [in the conspiracy] (answering telephone, taking drug orders and referring buyers to the independent contractors, delivering and selling drugs, as well as occasionally picking up drug shipments and preparing packages for sale) in [the] drug trafficking conspiracy went well beyond that of a simple buyer-seller relationship. The full activities of the drug conspiracy were not only reasonably foreseeable to [the defendant], but were also performed in furtherance of the jointly undertaken criminal activity and advanced an objective within the scope of the conspiracy that he joined. 36 Id. at 1327. See also United States v. Magana, 118 F.3d 1173, 1206 (7th Cir.1997) (holding that defendant is liable for entire quantity of drugs attributable to conspiracy in circumstances where defendant is one of conspiracy's central figures). 37 In the case under consideration, Gray-Bey's contention that the amount of cocaine distributed by his co-conspirators was not foreseeable to him runs counter to the recorded conversations between Daniels and Gray-Bey which demonstrate that Gray-Bey was actively involved in the conspiracy leadership since the earliest days of the group's drug dealing. See Goines, 988 F.2d at 765-66. In a wiretapped phone conversation on January 18, 1990, Gray reveals the long-standing nature of his drug dealing relationship with [Daniels]. They discussed the old days, with Gray reminiscing that things ran more smoothly when [Daniels] exerted greater control over the conspiracy.... Id. at 765. The Goines Court continued: [b]y his own words, Gray conspired to distribute cocaine with [Daniels] for years. Id. at 766. Thus, under this Court's rule in Tolson, because Gray-Bey was an active participant in the drug conspiracy and knew of other conspirators involved, the sale of several more kilos of cocaine by other members of the conspiracy was reasonably foreseeable. As in Price, Gray-Bey knew of or reasonably should have known of the extent of the conspiracy he helped lead. Thus, it was proper for the trial court to find that Gray-Bey was responsible for the total sum of cocaine distributed by the conspiracy: between fifteen and fifty kilos. 38 Despite the weight of law to the contrary, Gray-Bey maintains that he should not reasonably have been held accountable for the total amount of cocaine attributable to the conspiracy. Specifically, Gray-Bey argues that both his guideline sentence, as well as his mandatory minimum term, were adversely affected by his counsel's deficient performance in failing to object to the findings in the presentence report that Gray-Bey was responsible for between fifteen and fifty kilos of cocaine and that his base offense level and sentence should have been substantially reduced given his responsibility only for the lesser amounts of cocaine. 39 The trial court responded to Gray-Bey's contention that his counsel's performance was deficient by noting that [u]nder Strickland, the petitioner must show that counsel's performance was deficient as measured by an objective standard of reasonable effectiveness and that he was prejudiced as a result. Gray-Bey has neglected to point out how his counsel's failure to make the objection was a deficiency in performance. 40 To obtain relief on a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel, Gray-Bey was required to demonstrate in the trial court that he was prejudiced by his counsel's deficient performance. See Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 687-88, 104 S.Ct. 2052, 2064, 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984). In order to demonstrate prejudice, Gray-Bey was required to demonstrate that there is a reasonable probability that, but for counsel's unprofessional errors, the result of the proceeding would have been different. A reasonable probability is a probability sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome. Id. 466 U.S. at 694, 104 S.Ct. at 2068. Gray-Bey failed to establish how his counsel's failure to object to the drug quantity used by the trial court at sentencing constituted deficient performance. Gray-Bey failed to adduce any evidence to demonstrate that he was responsible for any less than the full fifteen kilos of cocaine. Gray-Bey also presented no evidence to satisfy Strickland's requirement that he demonstrate that, but for counsel's unprofessional errors, the result of the proceedings would have been different. 41 In summary, this Circuit's law, that a defendant is responsible for the acts of his co-conspirators so long as those acts were reasonably foreseeable and were made in furtherance of the conspiracy, is clear. Under this Court's holding in Tolson and Price, the distribution of between fifteen and fifty kilos of cocaine was certainly foreseeable because it was in furtherance of Gray-Bey's role as a leader in the drug trafficking conspiracy. Furthermore, the defendant has failed to provide evidence sufficient to demonstrate that, under Strickland, he was prejudiced by his counsel's failure to object to the findings of the presentence report. The defendant has failed to establish that, but for his counsel's unprofessional errors, the result of the proceeding would have been any different.