Opinion ID: 1399696
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Testimony about Harris's luxury vehicles

Text: Harris claims that the district court improperly admitted evidence that he drove numerous luxury vehicles because the evidence was irrelevant and unfairly prejudicial. Under Federal Rule of Evidence 401, evidence is relevant if it has any tendency to make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence. Fed.R.Evid. 401. Evidence of unexplained wealth, such as the testimony about Harris's luxury vehicles, is admissible as relevant circumstantial evidence of drug trafficking if the unexplained wealth was acquired contemporaneously with the alleged drug trafficking, if the wealth creates an inference that the defendant was involved in drug trafficking, and if the government presents evidence that the wealth was not obtained through legitimate means. United States v. Carrera, 259 F.3d 818, 829 (7th Cir.2001); see also United States v. Smith, 308 F.3d 726, 737 (7th Cir.2002) ([E]vidence of an unexplained, lavish lifestyle is probative of the existence of income derived from a drug conspiracy.); United States v. Penny, 60 F.3d 1257, 1263 (7th Cir.1995). The district court articulated the proper legal standard in its ruling on Harris's motion in limine, stating that the vehicle evidence would be relevant to show an unaccounted for source of income if the Government is able to introduce other evidence that the defendant lacked a source of income. And the government laid its foundation through Harris's girlfriend, who testified that Harris was not employed from 2003 through 2006. The evidence of luxury vehicles had some probative value, especially considering that these vehicles were not registered to Harris but to his relatives and acquaintances including his six-year-old son. We do not believe the vehicle evidence was unfairly prejudicial, and the district court did not abuse its discretion by allowing the government to present the evidence. See Wantuch, 525 F.3d at 518.