Opinion ID: 776136
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Calculation of Drug Quantities

Text: 22 Defendants allege that the district court did not have sufficient evidence to support the drug amounts attributed to them. Specifically, Defendants reiterate this court's concern in Gibbs with whether certain witness testimony contained sufficient indicia of reliability to satisfy the preponderance of evidence requirement. 3 Cf. Gibbs, 182 F.3d at 440. However, only Needum and Woods have specified precisely where witness testimony on resentencing was suspect. The other Defendants attempt to either incorporate their co-defendants' arguments by reference under Rule 28(i) of the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure, or aver to calculation errors in broad, summary fashion. Neither of these strategies will suffice to preserve the issue on appeal. The calculation of drug quantities is an individual, fact-specific exercise that requires individual, fact-specific briefing. Because Needum and Woods's co-defendants have failed to adequately brief this court, we consider the co-defendants' claims to have been abandoned. See Bickel v. Korean Air Lines Co., 96 F.3d 151, 154 (6th Cir. 1996) (holding that arguments not fully briefed are deemed abandoned); United States v. Elder, 90 F.3d 1110, 1118 (6th Cir. 1996) (holding that when one appellant raises fact-specific issues, a motion to adopt that appellant's argument, without more, is insufficient to raise that point of error as to the adopting co-appellant); accord United States v. Harris, 932 F.2d 1529, 1533 (5th Cir. 1991). 23 We review the sentencing court's determination of drug quantity for clear error. United States v. Jennings, 83 F.3d 145, 149 (6th Cir. 1996). The quantity of drugs need only be supported by a preponderance of the evidence. Id. The district court may rely on any competent evidence in the record; however, the district court's findings must have some minimum indicium of reliability beyond mere allegation. United States v. Ward, 68 F.3d 146, 149 (6th Cir. 1995) (citation omitted). 24 Needum was sentenced for possessing or distributing 834.2 grams of crack. On appeal, Needum challenges the accuracy of 826 grams attributed to him: 700 grams from the testimony of Quinton Clausell and 126 grams from the testimony of Tom Terry. He asserts that neither witness had sufficient indicia of reliability to justify the district court's finding by a preponderance of the evidence. 25 We find that Judge Smith did not err in his calculation. In Gibbs, we expressed particular concern with the unexamined hearsay testimony provided by witnesses, and relayed through the probation officer to the court. Gibbs, 182 F.3d at 444-45. On remand, Judge Smith confined himself only to that evidence available in the trial record. He estimated that Needum sold 700 grams of crack based on the trial testimony of Clausell. Judge Smith noted Mr. Clausell stated clearly that he saw the defendant selling crack on almost a daily basis throughout 1992 and that during this time, the defendant typically possessed a quarter ounce of crack per day. He did not note anything during cross-examination that would significantly undermine [Clausell's] credibility. A.J.A. at 446. Using a conservative estimate of possession or distribution of a quarter ounce of crack two times per week for the year of 1992, the district court arrived at the 700 gram figure. A.J.A. at 446, 705. Judge Smith also noted that Jeffery Crockett had seen Needum selling crack at that time. A.J.A. at 446. George Miller partially corroborated this testimony at trial, stating that he saw Needum with $100 worth of crack on at least two or three occasions. A.J.A. at 956. 26 Needum also objects to the 126 grams attributed to him by Terry. He argues that Judge Smith simply adopted this number without any further investigation into the reliability of the witness as required by Gibbs. Cf. Gibbs, 182 F.3d at 444. Judge Smith did rely solely on Terry's trial testimony in which Terry alleged to have sold Needum two ounces (56.7 grams) of crack on two separate occasions. A.J.A. 1053-59, 1061. However, unlike the amounts attributed to him in Gibbs, these calculations were based upon Terry's testimony at trial, subject to cross examination, and not by hearsay evidence relayed from Terry, to a probation officer, to the court. Furthermore, Needum's drug activity is corroborated by the testimony of Crockett and Andrew Jackson. A.J.A. at 772, 1260-61. 27 We find, therefore, that the district court had sufficient indicia of reliability to sentence Needum for possessing or distributing 834.2 grams of crack. 28 At resentencing, Woods was found to have possessed or distributed 1251.48 grams of crack. Woods disputes 1211.68 grams of this amount. Again, Judge Smith used testimony available from the trial transcript, and again Judge Smith stated that his observation of witnesses on the stand provide their indicia of reliability. Woods, like Needum, alleges that the evidence is nevertheless unreliable. In particular, Woods objects to the use of the trial testimony of Robert Dotson, Clausell, George Gladden, Crockett, and Jeremiah Berger to establish the quantity of drugs. Having reviewed the record closely, we do not believe that the district court clearly erred in attributing this amount of drugs to Woods. 29 Dotson attributes 766.16 grams of crack to Woods. This amount is derived from the half an ounce (14.16 grams) Woods provided to Dotson in 1992, A.J.A. at 608, 609, 1486; nine ounces (252 grams) Dotson observed stashed in a sock in Woods's residence in 1993, A.J.A. at 677-78; and 500 grams that Woods processed at Dotson's residence on two separate occasions in the spring and fall of 1994. A.J.A. at 630-32, 1487. This court was suspicious of the testimony Dotson gave to the probation officer in Gibbs, especially considering Dotson's inability to recognize weight of drugs by sight. Gibbs, 182 F.3d at 444. These concerns linger on appeal. We believe that Dotson, as a seller and sometime user, could easily identify an ounce of crack cocaine, see A.J.A. at 632, and likely could recognize nine times that amount dumped out of a sock. But we are wary of Dotson's testimony that he could identify twenty or forty times that amount on sight. Indeed, Dotson testified that he did not know what a kilogram was. A.J.A. at 628. Nevertheless, we think that there is sufficient proof to support the full 500 gram estimate. 30 Clausell testified that he observed Woods cook about ten ounces of crack in a pot or jar on a third occasion in the winter of 1994. A.J.A. at 721-22. Woods showed Dotson a stash of at least nine ounces that he kept in a sock. Dotson testified that Woods cooked a large amount of cocaine in a clear Visionware cook pot in his apartment in the spring and then cooked another large amount in his apartment in the fall of 1994. A.J.A. at 630-32. Given that Woods cooked ten ounces on a separate occasion in a similar pot, and given that Dotson saw Woods's inventory of nine ounces, we conclude that the district court could reasonably estimate Dotson's testimony of a large amount as at least nine ounces (252 grams) on two occasions or over 500 grams. Therefore, we hold that the 766.16 grams attributed to Woods by Dotson was not in error. 31 Clausell attributes 288.08 grams to Woods: 8.08 grams from his own purchases in 1992 and 1993, A.J.A. at 717,1484, and 280 grams during the aforementioned cook in the winter of 1994. Woods claims this testimony is not credible due to Clausell's drug use. We have already ruled in Gibbs that Clausell's drug use does not make reliance on his testimony clear error. See Gibbs, 182 F.3d at 445. Defendant's charges of collaboration between Dotson and Clausell are wholly unconvincing. Neither do we believe the district court erred when it found the winter cooking incident observed by Clausell to be separate from the spring and fall cooking incidents that took place at Dotson's residence. Therefore, we hold that the attribution of 288.08 grams to Woods by Clausell was not in error. 32 Gladden attributes 100.4 grams to Woods, eight grams in 1993 and 92.04 grams in 1994. A.J.A. at 862-67, 876-77, 1487-88. Woods argues that Gladden's amounts are mathematically impossible and internally inconsistent. This argument is without merit. The presentence report attributes 184.08 grams to Woods based on a quarter ounce sale of crack once a week for twenty-six weeks. This is a conservative estimate based upon Gladden's testimony that he bought from Woods during the winter to summer of 1994 about a quarter ounce every three or four days. A.J.A. at 878. To avoid double counting, this amount partially discounts the amount that could have been attributed to the winter cooking session in 1994, leaving the 92.04 figure. A.J.A. at 1488. We hold that the district court did not err in attributing 100.4 grams to Woods from Gladden's testimony. 33 Crockett attributes 36.4 grams to Woods. This amount is based on two half-gram sales in 1991 and five quarter-ounce purchases in 1994. A.J.A. at 1242-43, 1483. Berger attributes 21 grams to Woods, derived from Berger's testimony that he received 3.5 grams from Woods on six occasions. A.J.A. at 942-43, 1489. In both of these cases, the witnesses described the transactions with specificity. Defendant's attempts to impeach their credibility are unpersuasive. Therefore, we hold the full 57.4 grams was properly attributed to Woods. 34 To summarize, we hold that the district court's calculation of 834.2 grams attributed to Needum and 1251.48 grams attributed to Woods was not clear error.