Opinion ID: 667507
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Milton Sims

Text: 69 1. Sufficiency of the Evidence--Attempted Possession of Six Kilograms on July 7, 1988 (Count Three) 70 This conviction rests upon the controlled delivery of the Federal Express packages containing cocaine that the authorities attempted to make to Linda Williams. Williams refused to accept the package sent to her on Sims' advice. As we noted preciously, Sims was tipped off when the packages did not arrive on time. See Tr. 145, 497-501; Brown Tr. 16, T. Eastern Tr. 66-67; see also Tr. 578; Ex. 536. Sims now argues that he cannot be convicted of attempt when he instructed Williams not to accept the package. 71 An attempt charge requires an intent to commit the underlying offense plus a substantial step towards its completion. United States v. Cea, supra, 914 F.2d at 887. We find the evidence sufficient to support the charge here. Sims was intimately involved in the oversight of the cocaine deliveries via the Federal Express system. Tr. 129-135, Baker Tr. 5-17, Brown Tr. 5-10; Eastern Tr. 29-31. Indeed, the fact that Sims could direct Williams not to accept the package suggests that his involvement and direction did not cease when the cocaine left Los Angeles, but instead extended through receipt of the contraband in Milwaukee. In this case, the cocaine had been procured and sent on its way, and had Sims not telephoned Williams and told her to refuse delivery of the package, the cocaine would have returned to his constructive possession in Milwaukee. 3 And although Sims did instruct Williams not to accept the package (Tr. 145; Brown Tr. 16), he did so only because he suspected the package had been intercepted (Eastern Tr. 66-67). In this sense, he is no better off than a burglar who abandons his villainy when the alarm sounds. Having originally harbored the intent to take possession of the cocaine in Milwaukee through his subordinates, and having taken steps to accomplish that end through the courier system, Sims is culpable for the crime of attempt despite his last minute change of heart. See United States v. Rovetuso, 768 F.2d 809, 821-22 (7th Cir.1985), cert. denied, 474 U.S. 1076, 1106, 106 S.Ct. 838, 1951 (1986); Fryer v. Nix, 775 F.2d 979, 993-94 (8th Cir.1985). We therefore affirm Sims' conviction on Count Three of the superseding indictment. 72 2. Sufficiency of the Evidence--Possession of a Handgun in Relation to a Drug Trafficking Offense (Count Seven) 73 The government concedes error in this conviction. Accordingly, we reverse Sims' conviction on Count Seven and remand for resentencing. 74 3. Sufficiency of the Evidence--Attempted Possession of Four Kilograms on March 9, 1990 (Count Eight) 75 This charge arises from the controlled delivery that the authorities attempted to make in Milwaukee after Carolyn Baker had been arrested in Los Angeles with the cocaine in her possession. See Tr. 167-174. As we have previously recounted, when Baker and the authorities arrived in Milwaukee, she contacted Sims to have the cocaine picked up, as she and Brown normally did. Baker Tr. 47-48. Shortly after she beeped Sims, he arrived at her house with Darryl Ellison. At that point, Baker revealed to Sims that she had been arrested and that the police were in the house. Baker Tr. 49-50. Sims and Ellison fled, but Sims was caught. Sims maintains that the evidence was insufficient to show that he had gone to the house in order to retrieve the cocaine. 76 Again we find the evidence sufficient to support the attempt conviction. Sims' network had sent the cocaine on its way to Milwaukee and the cocaine indeed arrived, albeit in the company of the authorities. See Baker Tr. 41-45; Tr. 247-53. The circumstances suggest that Sims was prepared to pick up the cocaine from Baker and that only Baker's last-minute disclosure that the police were present stopped that from happening. See Part B(1), supra. We therefore affirm Sims' conviction on Count Eight of the superseding indictment. 4. Admission of Tax Information 77 In an attempt to cast an innocent light on his activities, Sims presented several witnesses who testified that from 1987 on Sims had been steadily employed selling mobile phones and beepers, working for an electronic plating company, and also working in a family trucking business. Tr. 631-32, 653-54, 656. In rebuttal, the government offered evidence indicating that Sims had filed no tax returns for 1987 and 1988, and in 1986 had filed a return showing income of only $1,157. Tr. 759-61. 78 The district court did not abuse its discretion in allowing this evidence. The time frame of the evidence corresponds with the alleged conspiracy (1986 on), and tends to support the inference that, contrary to his defense, Sims had not earned legitimate income during this period. United States v. Briscoe, supra, 896 F.2d at 1500.