Opinion ID: 567448
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Acting as an Organizer or Leader

Text: 92 Joseph Bickett contends that the district court erred in assessing a four level enhancement of his sentence for acting as an organizer or leader. Under United States v. Harwell, 737 F.2d 971 (11th Cir.1984), defendant asserts that an individual cannot be held criminally liable for substantive offenses committed by members of the conspiracy before that individual joined or after he has withdrawn from the conspiracy. He asserts further that there were two conspiracies, not one, and that his participation was limited to the marijuana transactions occurring from March 1987 to February 1989. 93 The United States asserts that the standard for reviewing the district court's determination regarding defendant's role in the offense is a clearly erroneous standard, as stated in United States v. Silverman, 889 F.2d 1531, 1540 (6th Cir.1989). U.S.S.G. § 3B1.1(a) provides for a four level enhancement if a defendant acts as an organizer or leader of a criminal activity involving five or more persons. The government argues that more than five people were involved in these offenses. Defendant directed the actions of others, including the coordination of Haskell's Maine drug operation during Hunt's incarceration. 94 Applying the clearly erroneous standard of review, we affirm the district court's enhancement of Joseph Bickett's sentence for acting as an organizer and leader. The district court was not clearly erroneous in finding Bickett to be an organizer who furthered the conspiracy by coordinating the replacement of Hunt by Haskell while Hunt was incarcerated in Louisiana. Moreover, defendant is not being held liable for substantive offenses committed by members of the conspiracy before he joined the conspiracy, inasmuch as the record indicates that Elder had obtained marijuana from the Bicketts from the outset of this conspiracy. AFFIRMED.