Opinion ID: 3001171
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Credibility of Government’s Witnesses

Text: At trial, the government brought in thirteen lay witnesses, most of whom had damning things to say about Williams. To parry the blow of their testimony, Williams asks this Court to deem the testimony of the witnesses who testified against him incredible as a matter of law. Williams argues that the government’s lay witnesses should not be believed because they were drug users at 10 Nos. 07-1182, 07-1190 & 07-1191 the time of the investigation and had ulterior motives aside from fulfilling their civic duties. This is a tall order, which we decline to fill. Though undoubtedly not pillars of society, the government’s witnesses were not unbelievable as a matter of law by virtue of their drug use. A witness’s testimony is incredible as a matter of law if it is “physically impossible for the witness to [have] observe[d] that which he claims occurred, or impossible under the laws of nature for the occurrence to have taken place at all.” United States v. Hunter, 145 F.3d 946, 949-50 (7th Cir. 1998) (quoting United States v. Saulter, 60 F.3d 170, 275 (7th Cir. 1995)). Even if the witness testifies as to a period during which he was under the influence of drugs, a jury is entitled to believe the witness and can discount the testimony as it sees fit. See United States v. Blackman, 950 F.2d 420, 424 (7th Cir. 1991) (holding that just because a witness was a drug user, the jury could believe him). Because he cannot point to any suspended laws of nature, Williams argues that the government’s witnesses were unbelievable as a matter of law because they were drug users during the relevant period of the investigation. Bethel, for example, smoked marijuana the morning of the August 29, 2002 controlled buy. John T. Williams, who testified that Bailey would always wait in the car while Williams was inside purchasing crack, testified that he smoked marijuana everyday during the relevant period. Most of the other witnesses’ testimony was, unfortunately, a variation on a theme. Because these witnesses’ drug use coincided with the period forming the basis of their testimony, Williams asks this Court to exclude it. It is probably true that witnesses who were stoned during the relevant parts of the investigation did not have all their wits about them, making their memories Nos. 07-1182, 07-1190 & 07-1191 11 fuzzy when they took the stand. This could, in turn, lessen the credence that is owed to their version of events. But it is for the jury to evaluate the credibility of the witnesses, including any cloudiness brought on by their drug use. United States v. Wilson, 31 F.3d 510, 514 (7th Cir. 1994) (stating that this Court will uphold conviction “even if the evidence is ‘totally uncorroborated and comes from an admitted liar, convicted felon, large-scale drug dealing, paid government informant’ ” (quoting United States v. Davis, 15 F.3d 1393, 1398 (7th Cir. 1994))). A prophylactic rule that drug-using witnesses are per se unbelievable would derail most drug prosecutions which frequently involve, of necessity, the testimony of drug users. These witnesses’ shortcomings must be accounted for through cross-examination, not an exclusionary rule. Accordingly, we will not upset the jury’s decision to credit their testimony. For similar reasons, that a witness has cooperated in exchange for a shortened prison sentence or, in Bethel’s case, money, does not change the outcome. Although the use of informants is “an unattractive business,” United States v. Kaminski, 703 F.2d 1004, 1010 (7th Cir. 1983), it is far from an upstart; “[c]ourts have countenanced the use of informers from time immemorial.” United States v. Dennis, 183 F.2d 201, 224 (2d Cir. 1950) (Hand, J.). Unveiling criminal operations in which the participants have a strong incentive to conceal their efforts often requires coopting those who had once engaged in the same sordid business. Id. Motivating these informants requires consideration, such as a shortened sentence or cash. In some circumstances, a trial court should issue a cautionary instruction with respect to an informant’s testimony. See United States v. Cook, 102 F.3d 249, 254-55 (7th Cir. 1996) (Ripple, J., concurring) (collecting cases). But this is not that case. Several witnesses detailed their involvement with Williams in the crack trade. One wit12 Nos. 07-1182, 07-1190 & 07-1191 ness, Bethel, produced recordings that memorialized some of these transactions. Further, the attorneys for all three defendants pointed out the carrots motivating the witnesses on cross-examination. Thus, neither the drug use nor the use of incentives (whether viewed in isolation or in tandem) justifies excluding the testimony as incredible.