Opinion ID: 589777
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Conscious Avoidance Jury Instruction

Text: 14 Asuncion argues that the district court erred in giving a conscious avoidance instruction to the jury. We review de novo whether such an instruction should have been given. United States v. Sanchez-Robles, 927 F.2d 1070, 1073 (9th Cir.1991). 15 The conscious avoidance instruction is appropriate when the facts and circumstances surrounding the crime created a high probability of criminal activity that the defendant consciously ignored. Id. See United States v. Jewell, 532 F.2d 697 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 426 U.S. 951, 96 S.Ct. 3173, 49 L.Ed.2d 1188 (1976). The instruction is not appropriate when the evidence suggests that the defendant either has actual knowledge or had no knowledge at all. Sanchez, 927 F.2d at 1074. For example, in Sanchez, the defendant's van reeked of marijuana. The court concluded that either she recognized the smell and knew she was carrying marijuana or she didn't recognize it and did not know the contents of her cargo. 16 In this case, Asuncion was asked to carry two packages to the United States under very suspicious circumstances. In her second statement to DEA agents, she acknowledged that she had suspected that the packages contained methamphetamine but chose not to open them. Accordingly, the trial judge did not err in giving the jury a conscious avoidance instruction.