Opinion ID: 3037353
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Maintaining a Distinct Chemical Identity

Text: In Daas, we considered whether products that include ephedrine may be considered “list I chemicals” for purposes of 21 U.S.C. § 802 (34). Daas, 198 F.3d at 1173-79. Daas was convicted of distributing listed chemicals with reasonable cause to believe they would be used to manufacture methamphetamine. Id. at 1171. Daas sold large quantities of two brands of over-the-counter decongestants to convenience stores. Id. These products contained ephedrine and pseudoephedrine, but also contained other ingredients such as binders and an expectorant. Id. Daas argued that section 841(d)(2) criminalized only the distribution of pure ephedrine and pseudoephedrine. Id. We disagreed and held that the plain meaning of “listed chemical” included the ephedrine found in the over-the-counter products Daas sold. Id. at 1175. In holding that the ephedrine and pseudoephedrine contained in the over-the-counter products were listed chemicals, we noted that the ephedrine and pseudoephedrine in the products retained a separate existence. Id. As part of our analysis, we determined that the over-the-counter products were “mixtures” containing extractable ephedrine and pseudoephedrine. Id. The fact that the products were mixtures was significant because, by definition, a mixture’s components retain a separate existence; we defined a “mixture” as “ ‘a portion of matter consisting of two or more components3 that do not bear a 3 Lo contends that the Government was required to prove that all the ma huang extract components other than the ephedrine functioned solely as a carrier medium or packaging material. Daas provides no support for such a contention. Nowhere in Daas did we suggest that the other components combined with the ephedrine must function as a carrier medium or pack5462 UNITED STATES v. LO fixed proportion4 to one another and that however thoroughly commingled are regarded as retaining a separate existence.” Id. at 1174-75 (quoting Chapman v. United States, 500 U.S. 453, 461 (1991)). [6] In contrast, we explained that a “chemical compound” is something that “necessarily implies not a mere mingling of components but a chemical combination of them, resulting in their destruction as distinct entities and in the development of a new substance possessing properties radically different from those of its constituent elements.” Id. at 1175 (internal quotation omitted). It makes sense that a substance may not be considered a listed chemical merely because it is capable of reacting with other substances to produce a listed chemical. Just as possession of a listed chemical that can be used to manufacture a controlled substance is not sufficient to prove possession of a controlled substance, possession of a precursor to a listed chemical is not sufficient to prove possession of the listed chemical. Congress did not criminalize the possession of all materials that are important to the manufacture of a controlled substance; the material must be one of the identified listed chemicals. See 21 U.S.C. § 841(c). Thus, the Government was required to prove that the ephedrine maintained a separate existence within the ma huang extract seized aging material. In fact, we concluded in Daas that the substances other than the ephedrine and pseudoephedrine that were contained in the overthe-counter products were “irrelevant.” Daas, 198 F.3d at 1175. We reached this conclusion partly because the ephedrine and pseudoephedrine did not disappear or become different chemicals when added to the other substances. Id. 4 Relying on Daas, Lo argues that the prosecution was required to prove that the ephedrine did not bear a fixed proportion to the other components in the ma huang extract. However, the Daas court did not even discuss whether there was a fixed proportion when it reached the conclusion that the ephedrine contained in the pills was a listed chemical. Although evidence regarding a lack of fixed proportions might be useful in proving that a chemical maintained its separate identity within a combination of substances, such evidence regarding proportions is not required. UNITED STATES v. LO 5463 from Lo. It would not have been sufficient if the ma huang extract was a precursor material that could be used to create ephedrine. During the trial and other proceedings before the district court, Lo never argued that the ephedrine did not maintain a separate identity within the ma huang extract and he did not introduce any evidence that would support a finding that the ephedrine did not maintain a separate existence within the ma huang extract. Although Lo’s expert questioned exactly how much ephedrine could be extracted from the ma huang extract, he never contested the fact that the ma huang extract seized from Lo contained ephedrine. Nevertheless, on appeal, Lo argues that there was insufficient evidence that the ephedrine retained a separate existence within the ma huang extract. [7] Examining the evidence in the light most favorable to the Government, we hold that there was sufficient evidence that the ephedrine maintained a separate existence within the ma huang extract. The Government expert, a chemist, testified that the ma huang extract contained approximately 8% ephedrine. When asked how she reached this conclusion, she testified that she performed high performance liquid chromatography (“HPLC”). She explained that HPLC “basically quantitates how much sample is present in your second sample, how much pure sample is in there,” and she further explained that, by “pure sample,” she was referring to ephedrine. The district court concluded that the Government had merely proved that the ma huang could be changed into ephedrine through a chemical process. The judge apparently was basing this conclusion on the HPLC testing process. In order to conduct the HPLC analysis, the Government expert dissolved the ma huang extract in alcohol. There was no evidence at all, however, that there was a chemical reaction that resulted in the production of ephedrine. The Government expert testified that she was merely diluting the ma huang 5464 UNITED STATES v. LO extract in the alcohol and that she also could have performed this procedure using water instead of alcohol. She repeatedly testified that the ma huang extract contained ephedrine, not that the ma huang extract could be used as an ingredient to make ephedrine. Not surprisingly, in a field test, the ma huang extract seized from Lo tested positive for ephedrine. [8] Testimony by other experts also supports the jury’s verdict. A DEA agent with specialized training in clandestine drug laboratories testified that ma huang contains ephedrine. Lo’s own expert testified that the ma huang extract he tested was like other ma huang extract that contained 8% ephedrine. He also testified that the assay showing the ephedrine content in the ma huang extract “is a determination of how much some material of interest is contained in some sample, like silver in a silver dollar.” In addition, he testified that ephedrine had been extracted from ma huang and that an “extraction process is a removal of something from something else; a pulling out.” All of this testimony provides sufficient evidence that the ephedrine maintained its existence within the ma huang extract and was not merely subsequently derived from a chemical reaction with the ma huang extract.