Opinion ID: 168758
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: M r. Gates’s defense

Text: In addition to cross-examining the government’s witnesses, defense counsel presented evidence that M r. Gates drove his friend to Arizona because he thought M r. Yanez was considering purchasing a vehicle there. M r. Gates testified he was planning to visit his sister in Phoenix, and, on redirect, Agent Kinsey recalled some mention of a sister there. M r. Gates also clarified that he did know about the marijuana, but not before M r. Yanez told him about it at the checkpoint. M r. Gates testified in his defense, as did his then-separated spouse, and both testified about M r. Gates’s clean record and the unlikelihood that M r. Gates would be -5- involved in the scheme, given the relatively small amount of money and the high risk of tarnishing his record. E. Procedural background A federal grand jury indicted M r. Gates and M r. Yanez for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute less than 50 kilograms of marijuana, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 846, and for possession with intent to distribute less than 50 kilograms of marijuana, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) and 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(D). The grand jury also indicted M r. Gates for carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking offense, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 924(c)(1)(A)(I). M r. Yanez pleaded guilty to the charges. Before the case w as submitted to the jury, the district court granted M r. Gates’s motion for judgment of acquittal on the firearm charge. The jury convicted M r. Gates on both the drug charges. The district court sentenced Gates to 21 months’ imprisonment, a sentence six-months below the low end of the guideline range. M r. Gates now timely appeals.