Opinion ID: 547523
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Variation and Amendment of the Indictment

Text: 13 The indictment alleged that Helish possessed different quantities of marijuana, with intent to distribute it, in May, July, and August 1985. These were the dates on which the government believed Helish had taken delivery of the marijuana shipments from Aaron. The testimony elicited at trial, however, indicated that Helish received all three shipments in April and May. Helish argues that this variance between the indictment and the government's proof substantially prejudiced him because at trial he relied upon an alibi defense for the months of July and August 1985. In addition, he contends that the inconsistent testimony adduced at trial forced the government to constructively amend the indictment by arguing that Helish was in continuous possession of marijuana from May through August rather than employing the theory of the indictment that Helish took possession of the marijuana on three different occasions. Helish maintains that this continuing possession theory exposed him to double jeopardy because it charged him in three counts for possessing the same marijuana. 14 Helish overlooks a critical fact. The government charged him with possessing marijuana with an intent to distribute it, not with receiving marijuana. The indictment alleged that Helish possessed three different shipments of marijuana: Count 5 alleges that he possessed 1700 pounds of marijuana in May; Count 6 alleges that he possessed 1800 pounds in July; and Count 7 alleges that he possessed 2000 pounds in August. The dates on which Helish took delivery of the marijuana, however, are not material to a charge of possession with intent to distribute (unless, of course, he took delivery after the dates of the alleged possession). In general, a variance between an indictment and the proof established at trial is not fatal unless it involves an essential element of the crime charged. United States v. Cina, 699 F.2d 853, 859 (7th Cir.1983). An 'essential' or 'material' element of a crime is one whose specification with precise accuracy is necessary to establish the very illegality of the behavior and thus the court's jurisdiction. Id. The date Helish received the marijuana has no impact upon the lawfulness of his possession of the marijuana, and must be considered immaterial. Unless the particular date is an element of the alleged offense, it is generally sufficient to prove that the offense was committed on any day before the indictment and within the statute of limitations. United States v. Leibowitz, 857 F.2d 373, 378 (7th Cir.1988). Helish's alibi defense does not make the dates he received the marijuana material: 15 [w]here the indictment [as here] alleges that an offense allegedly occurred on or about a certain date, the defendant is deemed to be on notice that the charge is not limited to a specific date. He therefore cannot make the requisite showing of prejudice based simply on the fact that the government has failed to prove a specific date. 16 Id. at 379. Helish's claim that he was prejudiced is further undercut by the limited utility of an alibi defense against a charge of possession with intent to distribute. The availability of constructive possession arguments to the government makes the physical presence of the defendant with the drugs at any given time of little moment to a defendant's guilt or innocence. 3 17 Apparently overestimating the strength of the defendant's variance argument, the government is unwilling to concede that there was a variance between the indictment and the evidence adduced at trial. Instead, the government argues that it offered the evidence concerning the dates of the deliveries only to prove that Helish subsequently possessed the stated quantities of marijuana in May, July, and August. The government's reluctance to acknowledge a variance, coupled with Helish's alibi defense for the months of July and August, forced it to explain to the jury why it charged Helish with possession in July and August, rather than in May alone: 18 [S]o why July and August? July and August because as the court will instruct you with regard to possession, the term possession means that you have or you have [sic] the ability to control. Mr. Helish did not pick this marijuana up. He always had drivers [on] duty. Mr. Helish was directing it and Mr. Helish was the one that was making sure that the proceeds would get back to Mr. Aaron, whether he did it himself or whether he had the drivers bring it back. But he had in May, marijuana that he possessed with the intent to distribute and he had it in July and he had it in August. 19 Trial Transcript, vol. IX, at 1210. 20 The government contends that these remarks constituted only a comment upon Helish's constructive possession of the marijuana in July and August. We find this assertion to be disingenuous; it does not explain why Helish was charged with possessing portions of the marijuana in July and August when the government's evidence established that he possessed all of it in May. The government charged Helish with possession in July and August simply because that is when it thought he received the second and third shipments of marijuana, not because it was relying on a constructive possession theory to convict him. 4 21 Helish claims that the government's remarks constructively amended the indictment by presenting the jury with a theory that was not presented to the grand jury at the time of the indictment. He asserts that the evidence adduced at trial forced the government to argue that he was in continuous possession of all the marijuana in May, July, and August, rather than in possession of the separate installments as the indictment charged. The variance, Helish contends, reduced the government to asserting that Helish was guilty of all three counts of possession merely because he was in continuous possession of the same marijuana in May, July, and August. In addition to constituting an impermissible constructive amendment of the indictment, Helish asserts that the government thus subjected him to double (triple?) jeopardy, charging him for the same offense three times. 22 We do not agree with Helish's assertion that, solely on the basis of the above remarks, it is reasonable to assume that the jury found the Defendant guilty of possessing the same marijuana in May, July and August. Brief for the Appellant at 34. Viewed in isolation, the government's remarks are ambiguous. The indictment, however, is not. It clearly charges that Helish received three separate deliveries of marijuana; each count relates to a specific shipment and can be distinguished by quantity as well as by the alleged date of possession. Immediately before making the above remarks, the prosecutor emphasized to the jury that each count related to a separate delivery of marijuana. Moreover, the jury received only an instruction concerning constructive possession; the trial court issued no continuing possession instruction that threatened the defendant with double jeopardy. 5 An amendment of the indictment occurs when the charging terms of the indictment are altered, either literally or in effect, by the prosecutor or a court after the grand jury has last passed upon them. United States v. Muelbl, 739 F.2d 1175, 1180 (7th Cir.1984) (emphasis in original) (quoting United States v. Von Stoll, 726 F.2d 584, 586 (9th Cir.1984)). Helish's protests notwithstanding, nothing the government did or said mislead the jury about the terms of the indictment; accordingly, Helish's constructive amendment and double jeopardy claims fail.