Opinion ID: 752489
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: District court's adoption of the 50% figure.

Text: 30 The district court specifically adopted the 50% figure set forth in the PSR-a sufficient method of making the requisite factual findings. See United States v. Upshaw, 918 F.2d 789, 792 (9th Cir.1990). However, Brinton argues that this unsupported adoption of this figure was clearly erroneous. To support this position, Brinton relies on United States v. Simmons, 964 F.2d 763 (8th Cir.1992), which held that the district court could not rest its drug quantity determination on the basis of testimony that lacked sufficient indicia of reliability. 31 This argument fails. The 50% figure in the PSR was based on information obtained by the probation officer from the California Department of Justice laboratory expert assigned to the case. The court additionally had before it the declaration of the Government's expert stating that the material was 50% methamphetamine. Thus, the information came from a state laboratory expert and so had the required indicia of reliability. 32 However, it is clear from the record that the district court adopted the PSR's finding that the material was 50% methamphetamine because it erroneously believed that the jury's verdict precluded it from considering the amounts involved. Quantity is not an element of the offense of possession with intent to distribute-it becomes important only at sentencing. See Sotelo-Rivera, 931 F.2d at 1319 (Section 841(a) does not specify drug quantity as an element of the substantive offense of possession with intent to distribute; quantity is instead relevant to the penalty provisions of section 841(b), and is a matter for the district court at sentencing.). 33 Because the jury returned a general verdict, it was not required to accept the amount of drugs contained in the indictment. It only needed to find that Brinton possessed some methamphetamine with intent to distribute. Thus, the district court erred when it held that it could not consider the quantity of methamphetamine involved at sentencing. Upon remand, the sentencing judge must make a finding as to the amount of the 2,401 gram mixture attributable to pure methamphetamine. 34