Opinion ID: 689729
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: counsel for tineo's motion to withdraw under anders

Text: 37 Pursuant to Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738 (1967), Tineo's counsel has filed a brief stating that he finds no meritorious issues for appeal. However, Tineo's counsel does point our attention to one possible appealable issue: the trial court's failure to give an instruction that Tineo was only vicariously liable for possessing a gun if possession of the gun was foreseeable. 38 Tineo was convicted of Count Four, possessing a firearm during a drug trafficking crime, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 924(c), on a theory of Pinkerton liability. See Pinkerton v. United States, 328 U.S. 640 (1946) (a conspirator is vicariously liable for all acts committed by his co-conspirators during the course of and in furtherance of the conspiracy). Harris testified at trial that he possessed a gun when he was driving the marijuana for Tineo. Sandoval also testified that he saw Harris carrying a gun at the motel room. 39 Tineo argues that the district court erred when it failed to instruct the jury that Tineo could only be liable for possessing the gun if the presence of the gun were foreseeable. Tineo admits that trial counsel failed to request this instruction, but contends that the court should have given the instruction sua sponte. 40 We review for plain error the trial court's failure to give the foreseeability instruction. United States v. Fagan, 996 F.2d 1009, 1016 (9th Cir.1993) (plain error review where there is no objection to the instructions at trial). In United States v. Roselli, 432 F.2d 879, 894 n. 25 (9th Cir.1970), cert. denied, 401 U.S. 924 (1971), we held that reasonable foreseeability language may be added to a Pinkerton instruction if requested, but its omission is not reversible error. Here, where counsel did not request this language, its omission from the instruction was not clear error. 41 In addition, our independent examination of the record, pursuant to Penson v. Ohio, 488 U.S. 75, 83 (1988), discloses no further issues that merit review.