Opinion ID: 602407
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Bernard B. Goines

Text: 20 Only a sampling of the evidence offered against Goines is needed to show his participation in the drug conspiracy. Wiretapped phone conversations between Sterling and Bernard Goines establish Goines' agreement to sell cocaine in a partnership with Sterling. For example, in several conversations they talked about customers Sterling has directed, or will direct, to Goines: 21 Sterling: Did those people get in touch with you early? 22 Goines: Who? 23 Sterling: Them two that called me. Kenny, ... 24 Goines: Oh yeah. 25 Sterling: And a Coleman, Colby. 26 .... 27 Sterling: They calling for the one five o right? 28 Goines: .... No, he got a half. 29 Sterling: Oh, Colby? 30 Goines: No. One twenty five. 31 Sterling: That's all he bought? 32 Goines: Yeah. Ex. 1224 T. And the next day: 33 Sterling: I got somebody here that wants three. 34 Goines: Whole ones? 35 Sterling: Yeah. 36 Goines: Where he at? 37 Sterling: He right here. 38 .... 39 Sterling: Okay, well call Kenny, and where you want, what neighborhood you want him to come in? 40 Goines: A, shit. Might as well tell him to come over here too. 41 Ex. 1252 T. Goines also conspired with Johnny Holliman and the others working at the Palmer Street house. For example, after Sterling talked to Holliman (their conversation suggested that they both considered the cocaine that Goines possessed to belong to all of them), he called Goines to get some of the cocaine over to the Palmer Street house: 42 Goines: .... I had got rid of one, right? 43 Sterling: Yeah. 44 Goines: But I still got three other, let you get three man.... 45 Sterling: Yeah, cause I ain't got nothing man........ 46 Sterling: .... How do them three look, they good? 47 .... 48 Goines: You talking about does it have some strength or something? 49 Sterling: Yeah. 50 Goines: It still got a smell. 51 Sterling: Oh, well then, why don't you let Johnny take care of that man? 52 .... 53 Goines: You wanna come and get it? 54 Sterling: No. 55 Goines: Oh, you want Johnny to get it? 56 Sterling: Yeah. 57 Ex. 1404 T. The following conversation confirms that the Goines/Sterling conspiracy extended to Michael and those who worked for him: 58 Goines: .... We got like, you know how much we got altogether? 59 Sterling: How much? 60 Goines: About almost seven. 61 Sterling: .... Over Chicken now? 62 Goines: .... Yeah. 63 Ex. 1028 T. Goines and Sterling considered the total to include what Goines had and what was at the Palmer Street house. 64 Later, when Goines spoke to Spinks about the likelihood that Sterling had cocaine on him when he was arrested in connection with the six ounce deal, he implicated himself in the conspiracy with Sterling, Henry, and Gray: 65 Goines: Yeah. He had it on him. 66 Spinks: How you know? 67 Goines: Cause that's how we did it last time. 68 Ex. 1330 T. He also knew that Sterling had paid Henry the day before. (He didn't have no ends. What ends? He gave her the ends yesterday.). 69 When Goines' house was searched, the police found cutting agent and plastic bags. Later he told Sterling about three ounces of cocaine hidden in the rain gutter; Holliman testified that he retrieved that cocaine and gave two ounces of it back to Goines. Tr. 1631-34. In addition, the government offered the testimony of Durrah who bought cocaine from Goines on two occasions in 1989, after being fixed up with him through Sterling. On January 4, 1990, Durrah engaged in a controlled buy from Goines, and the police took the money from Goines. He called Sterling to complain. Ex. 1054 T. He and Sterling planned to meet later that night and they both decided to bring their guns with them. Ex. 1056 T. Although Goines was widely thought to have turned informant by early 1990, see, e.g. Ex. 1374-76 T (Sterling and Goines discussed their suspicions about each other, related to their recent arrests); Ex. 1404 T (Sterling was still suspicious of Goines, as were Michael and Gray), he clearly participated in the wide-ranging conspiracy until, and even continuing after, that point.